


For The Queen and The Hatter

by rexlover180



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alice in Wonderland, Alice in Wonderland References, Alternate Universe - Alice in Wonderland Fusion, Alternate Universe - Magic, M/M, Magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-30
Updated: 2016-07-20
Packaged: 2018-06-05 12:00:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 18
Words: 80,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6703735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rexlover180/pseuds/rexlover180
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The prophecy told of an Alice that will come to bring back order for both the Hatter and the Queen and save their world. But when two fall from the sky, everything changed into a guessing game. An Alice for the Queen and for the Hatter, but who's to say which is which? And will Alfred and Ivan be able to figure it out soon enough to save their lives?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

_With all of the players in their places,_

_But with no one left to cover the bases,_

_For The Queen and The Hatter,_

_An Alice will fall and make quite the clatter._

_A helper for The Queen and her rule,_

_An Alice will prevent all that is cruel._

_Assistant for The Hatter and the people,_

_An Alice will aid in the upheaval._

_With all of the players in their places,_

_Only one will make sense of all the faces._

* * *

It was a song stuck in his head, since before he could remember. Alfred consistently found himself tapping his fingers along with the beat, humming it under his breath without even noticing it. A lot of teachers had scolded him for doing it in the middle of a test. Strangely, though, he could never really remember the words. That, of course, didn’t stop him from trying. His family thought it was his “poetry phase”, but all of those folded up papers hidden and secure in his desk felt more important to him than anything else.

Cats, Hatters, and Queens danced through Alfred’s brain as he mindlessly tapped his pencil against his hand, staring blankly at the teacher writing on the board. It was stiflingly quiet in his place in the front and he could hear the telltale whispers at the back of the lucky kids. He was a Senior, for crying out loud, how come they had to have a seating chart with just a few months left of high school to go?

The teacher asked anyone about their opinions on the themes of “A Streetcar Named Desire” and Alfred expertly avoided eye contact, pretending that he was deep in thought and still trying to find an answer to the question. The victim was called on by the teacher and Alfred gave a little triumphant smile. He looked down at the empty notebook paper in front of him and felt the urge to start doodling. There was something inherently dangerous of doodling at the front of the room, especially this close to the teacher, but just a little wouldn’t hurt anyone.

Everyone’s got those little designs they always do on their notes. Some have those swirly things, some just use up their entire pens trying to blacken the entire page; Alfred had sunflowers. Well, mostly sunflowers. Sometimes snowflakes would make their way onto the page and they honestly didn’t look too bad, if he said so himself. He’d even submitted this epic painting of a sunflower field in a blizzard to a competition after his art teacher convinced him. He didn’t win anything but it was still something he held with a lot of pride.

The bell rang eventually and Alfred let out a heavy sigh of relief. Last class of the day taken care of! Now he was free to actually enjoy his life. He packed up as quickly as he could, ducking out of the room and heading towards the bathroom before he went to see his friends and hang out with them. He, Francis, and Arthur had made plans to go shopping together (Alfred had no idea how Francis was able to swing that by Arthur) and he was so stoked to finally spend his savings on that epic new game that came out!

After relieving himself quickly, Alfred made a beeline for the sink, making quick work of that as well. The room was completely empty, a rare and honestly creepy occurrence, especially at the end of the day. Alfred was definitely more than aware of the rumored ghost that liked to hang around the bathrooms. He just hoped she was in a good mood today…

As he turned off the faucet, Alfred glanced up at the mirror to check and make sure everything still looked good, but when his eyes met purple, he froze, all the air in his lungs choking out of him. He swore he was just kidding about that ghost thing.

Instead of his own reflection staring back at him, a different man stood in the mirror. He was taller than Alfred and fairly pale, like he didn’t see much sun. He had fairly well-kept pale blonde hair that skirted delicately over his _freaking purple eyes_. (Seriously, who the fuck has purple eyes?) As Alfred studied the face a little closer in the mirror, he could make out some faint traces of scars and he could see that the man’s lips were pretty badly chapped. He had a scarf wound tight around his neck, making it impossible to see it. The man looked frozen, like a picture in front of him, no emotions betrayed in his face.

Alfred was almost afraid to look away, entranced by the man in front of him. Was this really a ghost?

The spell was broken the second another boy entered the bathroom. Alfred glanced towards the intruder, surprised, but when he looked back at the mirror, his own reflection stared back. He looked almost sickly pale, his eyes wide. He just noticed that his hands had been trembling and he stuffed them, still wet, into the pockets of his jacket. That was…seriously freaky. Could it have just been his imagination?

Maybe…

Alfred slowly walked away from the mirror, not breaking eye contact with his reflection until he was outside. The bathrooms were always strangely quiet, but the hallways surrounded him in warmth and loud conversations. Teenagers laughing and gossiping all around him, some even running across the halls…it was enough to make Alfred all but forget about that strange experience in the bathroom.

By the time he made it to the school’s main entrance, his friends waving to him, he’d forgotten why he spent so long in the bathroom in the first place.

* * *

Ivan hummed quietly to himself as he set to stacking the toys in perfect order. It was a meticulous job, but he really didn’t mind, especially now. Surrounded in the quiet that came close to closing time, he was able to do whatever he wanted, including shutting off the music overhead and humming to himself. It was a song that had been stuck in his head since he could remember. His sisters had even picked up on using it, he’d used it so much. He never knew the words, nor could he ever find the actual song itself, no matter how hard he looked.

But he didn’t mind not knowing the words. It was almost peaceful, like the calm that comes with instrumental music. It followed him through the store as he ensured everything was in its rightful place. A certain level of calm came with working in a toy shop, especially one not in a major city. They were open until 10 just in case, but it rarely came to that. It was flooded with children during the day, which was a different kind of adventure. Ivan didn’t quite mind that, either. In fact, he really enjoyed children.

Normally, other adults didn’t get along well with him. He was not only much taller than most, but he also seemed to have a very intimidating demeanor that he wasn’t quite aware of. His sisters never said anything about it, but there were those very few blunt people that loved to share their opinions. Especially parents that were afraid he would scare the kids. He’d gotten past caring about the opinions of adults a long time ago, but he did put on his best face for the kids. A lot of them were impressed by his height, it did after all let him reach the tops of the shelves, were all of the best toys were stored. And they usually didn’t find his smiles “creepy,” as some of the complaints called it.

The clock struck 10 and Ivan made quick work of locking the door. It was finally beginning to get warm outside, frost no longer lined the windows, which was always a nice thing. Ivan set to work at the register first, counting through the money and putting everything in order there. He also made sure to write a quick note to the owner, who was always in early in the mornings, about how they were already out of stock of that new toy. They had only got it just yesterday, but the kids really seemed to love it.

Ivan didn’t sign it with his name, but with his signature little doodle. Everyone who worked in the store knew it was from him. A small, meticulously drawn sunflower. Most of the time it was a sunflower, unless it was a very serious message, then it was a snowflake, still meticulously drawn. Ivan took a lot of pride in his art.

After that, he made sure to quickly check over the aisles, just to make sure nothing was out of place. That was his favorite thing about closing or opening the store; everything was neatly organized and perfectly in its place without the disruption and chaos that came with kids flooding the store during business hours. With that in order, Ivan checked the bathroom in the back. He’d cleaned it earlier, when it was clear no one was going to come in, but it always did some good to check things over twice.

Inside, everything was perfectly spick and span and he was about to leave when he noticed a smudge on the mirror. With a small sigh, Ivan moved forward to see if he could just clear it off with his sleeve, but he stopped cold when he looked into the glass. It was almost as if the mirror was a window, someone else on the other side.

He looked like a teenager, maybe a head shorter than Ivan. His mussed up, sandy blonde hair framed his face quite nicely. It was obvious that the boy took pretty good care of himself, he seemed fairly muscular. The most distracting part of his face, Ivan had to admit, were those bright pools of sapphires in his eyes, hidden behind glasses with thin wire frames. Despite the boy’s emotionless face, it seemed like those eyes held a joy that could rival even the kids that came into the store. Freckles lightly dusted his cheeks, along with a light redness that probably came naturally from being in the sun.

From what Ivan could tell, he was dressed moderately, and was fairly relaxed. Ivan honestly thought that the kid would look a lot better smiling, if not more natural. Ivan nearly reached his hand forward to touch the mirror, but for some reason he found himself looking behind him, like he just felt an incredibly powerful need to look away. When he did, his head started to feel slightly fuzzy. He must not have gotten a lot of good sleep the night before, maybe he was just seeing things.

He left the bathroom, thinking numbly back at the reflection, the memory slowly fading from his mind. Once outside, breathing in the cool night air, he felt…lighter somehow. He’d long forgotten about strange men in mirrors.

He lit a cigarette as he walked into the cold darkness.

* * *

“I can’t believe you decided to spend all of your money on one game,” Arthur scoffed at Alfred while he held his game close to his chest.

“I think it’s adorable,” Francis snickered as they walked down the street. The sun was beginning to set, just in time for their little trio to walk home before it got too cold. It still wasn’t quite summer yet, so some cool breezes came by, causing shivers to go down their spines. “Just like how I think it’s adorable you only bought scented soaps.” Francis smirked as he said it, knowing just what kind of reaction he would get out of Arthur. Alfred, standing between them, made the smart decision in ducking back just enough for Arthur to take a swing at the other teen.

“Whoa, Artie, try not to hit the wrong person,” Alfred said, laughing as Arthur started shouting pretty creative insults in Francis’ direction.

“Besides,” Arthur huffed in an attempt to calm himself down, “I think it’s a perfectly sensible thing to spend your money on. More sensible than a lousy game. You don’t even have a right to complain about _my_ purchases, considering _you_ didn’t even buy anything.”

“Yes, well, I’ve been able to make the decision that I don’t need material objects to give myself happiness,” Francis chimed.

“So you’re broke?” Alfred asked bluntly and Francis balked, a dramatic hand over his chest.

“You would accuse me so bluntly?” Francis asked. “I thought we were friends.”

“That’s what you get for spending all of your money on those chocolates for Antonio last week,” Arthur said pointedly. Alfred let out a loud laugh. He hadn’t heard about that story yet!

“I was helping him with romantic problems!” Francis said indignantly. “I was using my money for good! Not for my own purposes!”

“Yeah, and I’m sure _all_ the stuff you got for Antonio was pure,” Alfred said. Sure, he hadn’t been around when Francis bought it, but he knew his friends. Francis and Antonio alone talking about love? He was certain some sex toys were involved, including the chocolates and flowers.

“Well, I mean, he needs to have a little fun,” Francis said with a shrug.

“You two disgust me,” Arthur said pointedly. “We’re in public.”

“Dude, it’s almost nighttime on a school night,” Alfred said. “No one’s around.” Arthur just scoffed, turning up his nose and walking a little ahead of them. Alfred just laughed, looking again at his game, even in the low light. He couldn’t wait to play this thing! He didn’t have that much homework to work on that night anyway…

“Oh, Alfred,” Arthur said as he started turning towards his house. Wow, were they already there? “I assume since you were likely to forget, do you even remember that history essay due tomorrow?”

“Shit,” Alfred groaned. “Are you serious?”

“At least consider doing your homework before you start that game,” Arthur said, waving good-bye. Well, at least to Alfred.

Alfred smirked triumphantly at Francis, who pouted, but waved to Arthur’s back anyway. Alfred elbowed him in the side with a smile as they started walking again.

“What?” Francis asked innocently.

“Seriously, dude?” Alfred asked. “You’re the self-proclaimed…romance master sex god or whatever, and yet you can’t even tell Arthur you’ve got a crush on him.”

“I do like the sound of sex god,” Francis mused, expertly avoiding the subject. Alfred just stared at him blankly until Francis’ smile started to fall. “It’s not a crush. More like a…squish, if you will.”

“That…is the…lamest thing I’ve ever heard,” Alfred said. Francis glared at him. “You’ve known the guy for pretty much your whole life but you’re afraid to admit that you’re getting feelings for him.”

“I’m afraid it’s knowing him so well that makes this more complicated than you think,” Francis mused. “You’ve known him for roughly two years. He’s not really the kind to actually enjoy romantic ideals or even demonstrations of affection. How, exactly, do you expect me to show him anything?”

“Well, you have a thing going there with the whole sex god idea,” Alfred said with a smirk, hoping to get to a lighter topic of conversation. “Just get in bed with him, and, _bang_! He’s all yours!”

“And how do you suggest I get him there?” Francis asked.

Alfred shrugged. “I dunno, tell him you got some Earl Grey and it’s in your room.”

“I’m sure that will work wonders, Alfred,” Francis said, turning towards his own house as they started to pass it. “I’ll consider it. Good luck on your essay!”

“Ugh,” Alfred groaned, shoving his hands into his pockets as he continued walking. It was maybe another five minutes until he got home. He pulled out his phone quickly to check the time, the bright screen nearly blinding him in the dwindling light. He still had some time when he got home to play his game _and_ finish that essay. He looked up at the sky, smiling slightly at the stars that were only just starting to peek out, into the sky.

He stopped on the sidewalk as he looked up, staring right at the stars. He watched patiently as a few others stars came out of hiding, looking at them in awe. A part of him almost wanted to reach out, try and touch them. When he was little he used to try to jump for them, once on top of the roof. He smiled faintly thinking about it.

He shook his head numbly, continuing down the street. Now wasn’t the time to daydream, he had shit to do. Like saving the fantasy world of Gaia from an evil dictator!

* * *

Ivan did not enjoy waking up to an alarm. No matter how peaceful he could make that sound, he found himself glaring at it as it went off. It always had a habit of disrupting some of his favorite dreams, and always at the best part.

He’d gotten home rather late that night, maybe close to midnight, but he had to wake up by about six in the morning in order to make sure he got everything done that day he needed to. He needed to go shopping for groceries, knowing his younger sister would be busy with school and his elder sister busy with her own job. On top of that, he had to work a few hours after opening and he had promised Natalia that, once he got home that night, he would help her with some of her homework she wasn’t understanding. While he may not be doing much with his degree, Ivan did graduate college last year and Natalia seemed to take that as meaning he was a free tutor. That and this meant she had full license to be around him more.

Between school and her ballet practice, Ivan did have to admit that he didn’t see her as much as he wanted to, either. So he didn’t mind.

He slowly but surely sat up in bed, his spine cracking occasionally. He tried to rub the sleep from his eyes before getting up fully, gathering clothes, and he headed to the shower. For some reason, he found himself avoiding the mirror, not daring to look at it. He already knew how bad he looked in the mornings anyway. If only those parents that were scared by his smile could see him now…

He chuckled at the thought, stepping into the shower.

Luckily, the heat of the water had fogged up the mirror, meaning he couldn’t even accidentally look at the mirror as he got dressed and left, drying his hair with his towel. He probably looked presentable. If not, Katyusha would make sure to fix anything before he left the apartment. As he left, he could clearly smell breakfast and hummed excitedly, more than ready for some food. He did wonder briefly how they had found enough food to make a meal out of, but he didn’t keep the thought for very long.

After placing the towel in a hamper, he walked into their apartment’s kitchen, happy to see his sisters talking and laughing among themselves.

“Do you need my help?” Ivan offered to them as he stood in the doorway.

“We’re just about finished,” Katyusha said with a bright smile.

“Why such a big breakfast all of a sudden?” Ivan asked.

“It was my idea!” Natalia said proudly, standing on her tiptoes to look over Katyusha’s head. Ivan chuckled, looking at all of the work they’d done. It looked like there were three dishes.

“Well, it was a good idea,” Ivan said, going towards a cabinet. “I’ll go ahead and set the table, at the very least.” Katyusha would have to leave in about twenty minutes to make it to work on time and Natalia in about thirty for school. “I’ll clean up as well.”

“Oh, you don’t have to,” Katyusha said, shaking her head.

“I want to, sister,” Ivan said, already walking towards their little table with all the dishes he needed. “Have you made sure everything we need is on the list?”

“Just a few more items,” Natalia said, “just what we used today, and anything else you can think of.” Ivan nodded thoughtfully to himself as he set the plates and silverware out properly. He nodded at a job well done just as his sisters came out with the dishes in their respective plates and bowls. Ivan had barely even sat down before Natalia seated herself right next to him. He chuckled, going ahead and serving himself. He had no doubt that anything his sisters made together would be delicious, no matter the ingredients.

When he took his first bite, he found that he was definitely correct.

“Do you like it?” Katyusha asked eagerly. She had food on her plate, but had yet to start eating. Natalia was already digging in.

“It’s delicious,” Ivan said. “You should try some.”

“Oh,” Katyusha giggled. “Right.” She was so eager to please that she’d forgotten to eat herself, which was surprisingly common for her. They ate eagerly in silence and Katyusha was soon on her feet, gathering everything she needed before work. Ivan made quick work of getting the dishes into the kitchen and packing up all of the left overs, storing them in the fridge. Natalia helped as well, despite Ivan’s protests that she needed to finish getting ready as well.

“I’ll be off, then,” Katyusha said, walking to the door. Ivan dashed over to give her a quick hug before she left and she laughed, hugging him back. He closed the door behind her and let out a small sigh. Well, at least despite what strangers thought, his sisters never thought of him as creepy…Natalia was blunt enough to tell him, even with how much she liked him.

“You’re still helping me with homework tonight, right brother?” Natalia asked once Ivan was back at her side, mindlessly scrubbing a dish under the water.

“Of course,” Ivan said. “What subject do you need help with?”

“Math,” Natalia said bitterly, scrubbing a knife with a frown. “Like always.” Ivan couldn’t help but chuckle slightly. It seemed like he was the only one in his family that seemed to enjoy or even understand mathematics. It was, after all, what he went to school for. Well, more specifically, engineering, but as far as Natalia and Katyusha were concerned, it was all the same. He did once have a dream of reaching the stars, but at this point he was realizing just how unrealistic such a dream was.

“You should be going soon as well,” Ivan offered with a soft smile. “I would hate for you to be late to school. If you would like, I could pick you up from ballet practice.” Depending on how things went today, he could in theory watch some of it. He loved to watch his sister do ballet, whether in recital or practice.

“You’re always welcome,” Natalia assured him. Ivan nodded as she dried off her hands and went to collect her books before heading out the door, leaving Ivan alone with just a couple of dishes to do on his own. It was a quiet as it always was, that little song floating in the back of his head.

* * *

Alfred had made many bad decisions in his life. This was pretty high up there. Nowhere near close enough to that one time he decided to try replacing the milk in cereal with Coca-Cola, but this was still pretty high on the list. Alfred sat on the floor of his room, back leaning against his bed as he stared up at the ceiling. He was extremely well aware of the black screen on the television signaling his character’s death. He was also keenly aware of the time.

It was three in the morning.

And he hadn’t done any homework yet.

No big deal, no big deal. He’d been through worse. He took a deep breath, getting up and turning off the TV. Okay, step one done. He rubbed at his tired eyes, shaking his head. He’d pulled plenty of all-nighters before. This wasn’t going to be that bad. He headed into the hallway, stifling a yawn as he ducked into the bathroom, almost flinching as the harsh light flickered on above him. He closed the door a crack just in case someone else in this house was as stupid as him.

Oh, God. If Matthew found out Alfred did this again, he would kill him.

Alfred ran the faucet, cold water splattering across the sink for a few seconds before Alfred conjured the courage it took for him to collect the water in his hands and splash his face. He shivered at the contact, wincing when he realized he’d forgotten to take off his glasses. Groaning quietly, Alfred took off the glasses, looking around blurrily for a towel. It had woken him up, at least.

He shut off the faucet, cleaning up his face before wiping off his glasses. It probably did them good to be cleaned, anyway. Matthew was the one always saying that Alfred didn’t clean his glasses enough. Alfred plopped them back onto his nose, looking into the mirror in hopes of checking his reflection and make sure there wasn’t any water left to annoy him.

He froze in shock when he saw the face from before…the one that was definitely not his face. Alfred gulped. How’d he forget about something like that, it happened just a few hours ago, didn’t it? The man this time seemed to mirror Alfred’s expression, just as weirded out by this as Alfred was. Alfred felt his heart rate go up in panic. What if this was some kind of magic thingy and someone from another world was coming to invade?

He dared a glance at the door, as if to check and see if there wasn’t someone there, but he couldn’t see anyone. Looking back at the mirror, those deep violet eyes seemed to stare right into his soul. A shiver ran right down Alfred’s spine, his hair standing on end. He was almost afraid to make a sound and alert anyone else in the house of this intruder.

For some reason, Alfred found himself moving his hand forward, towards the mirror. Maybe this was just some kind of sleep-deprived hallucination. If he could just touch the mirror and discover for himself that there was nothing funky about this, he could get on with his life and do that stupid essay.

Before he could make it to the glass, however, the man inside the mirror reached out and _grabbed onto Alfred’s arm._ This time Alfred couldn’t hold himself back. He let out a surprised squeak, his heart plummeting into his stomach. He had a terrible feeling about this. The man started pulling and Alfred dug his feet into the ground, trying to pull in the other direction. He cursed his comfy, fuzzy socks as he slid hopelessly across the bathroom tile. He let out and uncomfortable groan as his fingers started going _inside the fucking mirror_.

“Help?” Alfred called out in a panic. “Someone?! Anyone!”

The man in the mirror had gone back to a stoic expression as he thoughtfully pulled more of Alfred’s arm into the mirror. It felt like his hand was in some kind of jelly and it made Alfred almost feel sick. The man’s grip was so tight it hurt and he seemed ten times stronger than Alfred. What if he was going to be trapped in some weird mirror dimension for the rest of his life? Forced to see his friends live their happy lives through a mirror. What if the guy in this mirror was trying to steal his life?

“Matt!” Alfred all but screamed. By this time, his arm was almost completely inside the mirror, his face really damn close to the man in the mirror’s. Alfred gulped, trying to get a closer look at the man, but he seemed like miles away from this close. He shivered as he tried to move is arm around inside the mirror. Ugh, it was like moving in syrup.

Alfred’s foot slipped and he let out a scream as the man gave one, solid tug, resulting in him tumbling, headfirst, into the mirror.

* * *

Ivan let out a satisfied sigh as he stood up from putting away the last grocery. It always gave him a sense of accomplishment, doing simple chores like this. Maybe he would vacuum the apartment while he was at it, before he went to work. That would feel pretty good as well. With a content hum, Ivan made a move towards the closet where they kept their vacuum, but something stopped him. He looked down the hallway, towards the door that led to the bathroom. He didn’t necessarily have to use it, but for some reason he felt drawn to it. He felt a huge urge to check himself in the mirror, a stark contrast from this morning when he avoided it…

The vacuum could wait a few seconds. Just a quick once over in the mirror and Ivan would get back to work. He stepped into the dark room, switching on the light before looking at the mirror. The part of him still focused on doing chores was happy with a simple glance before he continued with his day, but his more logical side stuttered to a stop as Ivan stared into the mirror. It was the boy from before, staring back at him in wonder and shock.

Ivan stood frozen in place, almost afraid to shatter what seemed like this already fragile reality, but he eventually found his feet moving forward slowly, stopping just in front of the sink. This was…insanity. This was twice in two days that he’d seen the wrong reflection in the mirror. Maybe he was going insane. He should probably see a doctor as soon as possible…

For now, however, he was surprised to see his hand reaching out to the mirror. Maybe if he could touch it and see that it was just a mirror, nothing else, everything could go back to normal. He didn’t make it very far before the boy in the mirror reached out and grabbed hold of his arm. Ivan gasped, immediately pulling back, but the boy’s grip on his arm was tight and unmoving.

Ivan tried to squirm, gaining traction with his boots on the ground, but he couldn’t release his arm. The reflection started pulling and Ivan felt his heart hammer in his chest. He really was insane, wasn’t he? His fingers touched the mirror, going through it as if it was made of liquid. His panic peaked as his entire hand was swallowed by the mirror, his fingers struggling to move in the thick liquid…whatever the hell it was.

The reflection gave a particularly hard tug and Ivan tumbled forward, his free hand clamping onto the sink in an attempt to anchor him. There was no one there he could call to, ask for help from. This had to be some kind of hallucination, he was going to wake up in some kind of hospital room, he knew it.

Before long, his hand started to slip and Ivan looked up at the boy, trying to see if he could find some kind of reason as to why he was doing this, but he was only met with the blank face from yesterday. A shiver ran up Ivan’s spine, trying as hard as he could to wrestle his arm back, but before long, his head went through the liquid glass and, out of instinct, Ivan held his breath. The rest of his body fell through almost instantly and Ivan was instantly surrounded by a rush of air.

He was falling!

Ivan snapped his eyes open and gasped, his lungs filling with…air. He stared down into a pitch-black hole as he plummeted down. Ivan let his instincts take over, curling into himself and anticipating an impact. He clenched his eyes shut tightly, hoping that the end would come soon. He stayed there for about a minute before he opened his eyes. He still couldn’t see the end of the hole.

The pit in his stomach that came with falling didn’t go away, but Ivan slowly started to come to his senses. He tried looking at the walls of this…hole, hoping to find something to grab onto. He had no idea what he would do after that, but it would at least give him a place to start. He tried somehow maneuvering himself to get close to the edge, but he found that once he moved, the wall seemed to move as well. It stayed a perfect distance from him, but nothing around him seemed to distort.

Ivan huffed, giving up on that idea for now. He decided to maneuver himself onto his back to look up, see if there was something there that could help him. No surprise, all he saw was blackness above him as well. When he turned back over, he all but screamed when he finally saw the ground advancing quickly towards his face.

He closed his eyes tightly, bracing himself for impact, but nothing came. He peeked open an eye, marveling at the grass that was mere centimeters from his nose. He breathed out a sigh of relief.

He heard a loud noise above his head before something heavy slammed into his back, the weight knocking him out before he could even touch the ground.

* * *

This whole falling into an endless hole thing could get pretty boring after fifteen minutes of doing nothing. Alfred was sprawled on his back, his arms and legs spread out as he tried to figure out how to tune out the wind blowing by his ears. This was his life now, he might as well get used to it.

Sure, eternally freefalling sounds really cool at first. But Alfred discovered pretty quickly that doing all of those fancy moves can get you really sick really fast. And after failing to touch any of the walls of this hole, he resigned himself to just falling for the rest of his life. The sound of wind was getting pretty annoying, though. He kind of wished he had been smart enough to have his phone in his pocket or something so he’d have music to listen to. Would there even be data in this hole?

That was a good question…

Alfred decided to glance behind him, towards what he remembered was the bottom, then again he’d lost his sense of direction a long time ago. He flinched when he realized that, just a few feet below him was a massive expanse of green, a field for miles around. But there was something directly below him and Alfred was on a collision course.

“Holy sh-” Alfred couldn’t even get the last word out before he plummeted on top of the thing, the force of their collision enough to knock him out cold.

* * *

“There’s…two.”

“Yeah. Weird.”

“What should we do?”

“Well, this puts a whole different spin on the game, doesn’t it? We need to rethink.”

“And just hand them over to whoever gets here first?”

“Only thing we can do, really. If it were just one, I’d say we hightail it out of here with him, but I don’t think we can take two and stay hidden.”

“Then let’s just hope for their sakes they get lucky and don’t die.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, funny story. First draft of this chapter was literally half the size of this thing. I’m not sure if the rest of the chapters in this fic will be this length, but I guess we’ll find out. I’m doing some new things with style, so bear with me while I’m experimenting. In any case, new story! Yay!
> 
> I have a massive soft spot for Alice in Wonderland AUs so I decided to make another one! And because I also have a soft spot for steampunk, it’s also gonna double as a sort of steampunk AU. It’s also a RusAme fic, because I am weak. Some of the other pairings I’m going to aim for are FrUK and hopefully PruCan, but we’ll see how that goes. Other than that, be aware of the rating and everything that comes with that.
> 
> Also, just so everyone is aware, Ivan is in mid to late twenties and Alfred is 18, about to head off to college in a couple months. Alfred lives close to DC, Ivan fairly close to Moscow.
> 
> Just some background really quick. In this universe, I guess, Alice in Wonderland doesn’t exist in popular culture, so that’s why they’re not making any ties to it. Also, anything going on in Alfred’s head is going on in English, while with Ivan, it’s in Russian. So like, in Alfred’s perspective, everyone is speaking as they would in English, ergo accents and such. In Ivan’s perspective, everyone is speaking as they would in Russian. So for example, in Ivan’s perspective, Alfred, who is an 18-year-old student that is barely bothering to learn Spanish, his Russian is going to be terrible. In Alfred’s perspective, Ivan, who is already fairly fluent in English, will only have an accent. I hope that made sense…
> 
> Pretty sure that’s it, so thanks for reading! And I’ll see you next time!


	2. Chapter 2

Throbbing head? Check. Blurry vision? Check. Random shoes he didn’t remember putting on? Check. No idea where the fuck he was? Check.

Alfred groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. His glasses were missing, so everything around him was blurry and nearly impossible to see. Just a ton of blobs. Well, at least that was what he saw when he looked down. He moved his head up in hopes of seeing where he was. He squinted as he looked around. This room was massive, but there was nothing in it. As far as Alfred could tell, the walls were lined with windows, white curtains flowing in the light breeze that came through. The floor seemed to have tiles, a mixture of different shades of brown.

Taking further stock of his surroundings, Alfred was able to find out he was sitting on a wooden chair with a gap in the back. His hands were stuck behind him, through the gap in the chair. When he tried to move them, however, he found that there was metal, like handcuffs, around his wrists. When he pulled, he found that they got caught on something that gave a lot of resistance, but it wasn’t his other hand. Curious, Alfred looked over his shoulder and nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw that there was someone in a chair behind him. Based on the man’s position and the fact that he wasn’t moving, Alfred guessed that he was asleep. Alfred tried to narrow his eyes to focus on the man, but he couldn’t clear his vision. Something was familiar about him, but Alfred couldn’t put his finger on it.

Alfred struggled to look over his shoulder to see if he could look between his chairs. He guessed that his wrists might be connected to this man’s. Well, it prevented him from moving…

Alfred huffed, trying to move his legs out of curiosity. He was met with clanking of metal and discovered that his feet were attached to the legs of the chair. He groaned, going back to looking around the large room. He couldn’t get out of this mess on his own…

Oh, the second he got a hold of that asshole that dragged him down here, Alfred was so gonna kick his ass into next week. And then use him to find a way back home. Wherever Alfred had wound up didn’t seem very friendly.

The room around them was completely empty, their two chairs in the center of it. But something didn’t feel quite…right about this place.

Alfred perked up when he heard a groan behind him and he couldn’t help but smile, looking back at the man. Finally, someone to talk to!

“Hey, there big guy,” Alfred chimed. “Welcome back to the land of the living.”

“Please be quiet,” the man muttered, the words almost intelligible through the man’s Russian accent. “Your voice is giving me a headache.”

Alfred scoffed. “Whatever. I was just trying to be nice. Fine. Figure out where we are by yourself.”

“You know where we are?” the man asked curiously.

“Well, no,” Alfred said. The man experimentally tested the bonds on his wrists and legs, taking stock just like Alfred had. “Hey…uh…I don’t have my glasses on. Do you know what this place is?”

“It looks…like a ballroom,” the man noted. “But it’s empty. It almost looks like it was ransacked. The windows are broken and all I can see as decoration are torn, white curtains. The only thing I can see intact is the door.”

Alfred hummed, experimentally seeing if he could move the chair. He smiled triumphantly when it slid against the ground noisily.

“Okay, we can get out of here, big guy,” Alfred said. “Point us towards the door and I think we can make it.”

“And what do we do once we get out there?” the man asked bluntly.

“Well, you don’t need to shoot down my good ideas like that.” Alfred pouted.

“Someone tied us up like this,” the man said. “I guarantee you we were not left alone. So if you want to meet who it was with no way to protect yourself, then by all means, go ahead.”

“Well, it’s not like I can get anywhere if I have to drag your fat ass with me,” Alfred said.

“You’re so vulgar,” the man noted with distaste.

“Fight me,” Alfred snapped. He wrestled with the restraints a little more before relaxing, slouching into the chair.

“One thing I do not understand is that they used shackles on us,” the man said after a short while.

“Shackles?” Alfred asked. “What’s wrong with handcuffs, jeez?”

“They are in good condition, too,” the man said. Alfred heard some clanking as the man moved his feet, as if to examine things more closely. That was weird…shackles? And in good condition? What century did that mirror take him to? “My name is Ivan, by the way. Considering our situation, we should at least get to know each other.”

“Alfred.”

“Nice to meet you, Alfred,” Ivan said with a sigh. Didn’t sound like he meant it, though…

* * *

It was only after about ten minutes that Alfred started to get antsy. He kept trying to test the strength of the bonds holding them together, despite the fact that Ivan had given up on them a while ago. Ivan had started examining the room they were in, as long as Alfred was quiet. It was a large ballroom, but no one had bothered to clean it for years. In fact, it looked ransacked. There were places on the wall where paintings had been hung, but now were just rectangles of different colors than the rest of the worn-down paint. The ceilings were incredibly high, but even the chandeliers were missing. Not even shattered glass was left on the ground.

“I’m bored,” Alfred said pointedly, his American accent absolutely butchering the Russian he was speaking. Ivan had no idea why or how he was actually speaking Russian, but enough strange things had been happening to him for him to not question it very much. “Have you come up with any fantastic plan over there?” Alfred asked impatiently.

“No,” Ivan said simply. Talking to Alfred was like talking to a child. He looked vaguely familiar, but Ivan didn’t have a good enough of a vantage point to see his face.

“So we’re just gonna sit here?” Alfred asked impatiently. “Doing nothing? Waiting for the asshole that dragged us here to come in and do whatever the hell he’s gonna do?”

“Wait, how did you get here?” Ivan asked. The way Alfred said that sounded like maybe something similar happened to him.

“Some asshole appeared in my mirror and dragged me in here,” Alfred said.

“Me, too,” Ivan said in surprise. What a strange coincidence…

“Dude, seriously?” Alfred asked. “What an asshole, dragging people into mirrors and shit. I fell down a hole for, like, twenty minutes!”

“I only fell for a few minutes before something heavy hit me,” Ivan mused.

“Weird, I hit something hard as a rock,” Alfred mused. It took Ivan far less time to piece together the facts than Alfred did.

“You were the one that fell on me?” Ivan asked.

“What? It’s not like I had any control of that!” Alfred protested. “You were the one just chilling where I was falling! And who are you calling heavy?”

“Your pride is obnoxious,” Ivan said flatly. Alfred balked and Ivan couldn’t stop the smirk on his face. Annoying Alfred was almost fun.

The door opened and both of them shut up, looking towards the door. A man peeked his head in, blinking at them owlishly, as if he hadn’t expected the two of them to be awake. He wasn’t the boy from the mirror, however. As he stepped inside, Ivan was able to get a good look at him and what he was wearing. He had fairly long, pretty well-kept hair and tired blue eyes. He had some unshaved stubble along his chin as well. He had on a fairly dirty, white dress shirt with the selves rolled up past his elbows along with slacks. It looked like he was heavily stained with black oil, even on his hands. Upon looking closer, Ivan noticed two, very clear rabbit ears the color of his hair. They drooped onto his shoulders, almost blending in with the rest of his hair.

“Considering your fall, I would have thought you two would have woken up later,” the man mused.

“ _Francis_?” Alfred asked.

“You know him?” Ivan asked, trying to look at Alfred.

“No one’s called me that in quite some time,” the man, Francis, smiled sadly.

“Dude, I literally saw you a few hours ago,” Alfred said bluntly.

“I’m sure I would remember meeting an Alice,” Francis said simply.

Alfred paused for a moment. “My name’s Alfred.”

Francis laughed lightly, walking a little closer towards them. “It’s a title. Normally, we go by titles rather than our names. Call me the March Hare, or Francis works. I don’t mind. It would be nice to be called by my name after so long.”

“You’re making no sense, dude,” Alfred said slowly. “Were you the one that tied us up like this? What the hell, man?”

“The Hatter’s idea.” Francis sighed. “I agree that you two shouldn’t be separated, but keeping you like this is a bit…much.”

“Why are we here?” Ivan tried asking slowly. “What is this place?”

“We needed someplace to keep you safe from the Queen,” Francis explained. “This place has been abandoned for years, it’s at least safe enough for you to wake up. And, of course, we can’t have you two going too far. You’re not from here, are you? The way you feel from the sky, I can only guess.”

“Yeah, where I’m from people don’t grow fucking rabbit ears,” Alfred blurted out and Ivan sighed. The way Francis was talking, it didn’t look like Ivan was going to be separated from Alfred anytime soon… Francis took it lightly, though, simply laughing it off.

“What an interesting world that would be,” Francis said simply. He was in a…strangely good mood. Did this have something to do with their arrival?

“Why do we matter so much?” Ivan asked before Alfred could try to ask anything else. “Why bother keeping us safe? Why keep us together?”

“It’s very strange knowing someone who doesn’t know the prophecy,” Francis mused, but he started walking forwards. He knelt between their chairs, fiddling with the shackles and a key. “You two are our Alices, though we never expected there to be two of you. It makes so much more sense this way. One of you is here to help the Hatter get rid of the Queen, the other is here to help the Queen keep control of this place.”

“But, wait, how’s that supposed to work with us together?” Alfred asked hesitantly.

“It’s not,” Francis said, moving to the shackles on Alfred’s feet. Ivan noticed how, strangely, one of Ivan’s hands remained shackled. “That’s the whole point. We need to figure out which Alice is which and use ours to the fullest potential.”

“And what will you do with the other one?” Ivan asked.

“Well, the Hatter wants to kill him.” Francis shrugged, moving to Ivan’s feet now. Ivan sat in shock for a short while, just staring as the man unbound his feet. “Of course, I’m against simply killing people I haven’t even met yet. From my understanding, where you come from, you use names not titles. So could I ask for your names?”

“Alfred.”

“Ivan.”

They were both cautious and hesitant. So this was the game they were playing, then? One of them was good, the other bad, but they had no way to find out? But once they did find out…one of them would die? Not to mention the talk of this Queen…No doubt she would want to kill the Alice for the Hatter…

Francis stood up, finished with his job. He placed his hands into his pockets, relaxing into his posture. Ivan stood up carefully, his back popping slightly, before looking back at his apparent partner. Ivan’s right wrist was connected to Alfred’s left, the short length of the chain all but forcing them to stand side-by-side. Once Ivan got a good look at the kid, however, his jaw nearly dropped.

“You!” They both shouted at the same time.

“You were the asshole that dragged me here!” Alfred snapped. “Why’d you do it, huh? I bet you really _are_ from this place!”

“I did nothing,” Ivan protested. “You were the one that pulled me through the mirror. I would say that you might not even be American, but your sense of entitlement and self-centered paranoia speaks for itself.”

“Self-centered?” Alfred balked.

“You seem surprised,” Ivan said smugly.

“Well, this will certainly be interesting,” Francis mused and the two stared back at him. Ivan couldn’t help but feel at least a little angry. Alfred was definitely the person in the mirror that dragged Ivan into this situation to begin with. Then again, it seemed like Alfred went through a similar situation. It could have been some kind of trick. Who knew what the rules were in this place? Still…the idea of being handcuffed to Alfred’s side definitely wasn’t appealing.

Francis nodded to the exit, walking ahead of them. Ivan followed after him first, Alfred hesitating and pouting like a child. Ivan tugged on the shackles, noting with a smirk that he was stronger than Alfred.

“Oh, yeah, do you guys have my glasses?” Alfred asked.

“Again, the Hatter’s idea,” Francis said. The room let out into a hallway, but Francis seemed to know exactly where he was going. This place had to be some kind of mansion, Ivan noted as he followed. “He believes that any way to weaken you while we don’t know which Alice is which is to our advantage.”

“So what I’m hearing is that I’m going to be mostly blind until either I prove myself useful or I’m dead?” Alfred asked bluntly. Francis just laughed with a wave of his hand. Ivan looked around carefully, taking in his surroundings. The rest of this mansion looked about the same as the ballroom. It was completely ransacked, just some scraps of fabric on the floor. There were even more imprints of where paintings had been, some of the frames had some interesting shapes to them, but that was the only thing interesting about this place.

Before long, they made it to the front door, or what was left of it. Half of it was just missing while the other half hung by a rusted hinge that squeaked in the small wind. Just outside, Ivan could clearly see a lot of lush, green grass. Curious, Ivan started walking faster, pulling an irritated Alfred along with him.

* * *

Alfred hated being pulled around. Why did this stupid guy have to be stronger than him? Alfred was pretty much used to being the tallest and the strongest out of all of his friends. Well, nearly all of them. So it was just plain weird now that he wasn’t. He felt weak…And he didn’t like it.

He huffed as he was pulled outside, trying to focus his eyes. It was bright and he winced for a short while. From what he could see, the outside of this mansion was overrun with grass and…flowers? As far as Alfred could see, there were colors spattering around the field just outside. He squinted, trying to see clearly, but it was a fruitless effort. Ivan continued to tug him, going towards the flowers.

“Wow, didn’t peg you as the kind of guy to like flowers,” Alfred snorted.

“I guess there are a lot of things about me that might surprise you,” Ivan said happily. Alfred scowled. Well, he bounced back from that quickly, didn’t he?

“Don’t get too close to the flowers,” Francis called out to them. “They can get kind of nasty.”

“They’re just flowers,” Alfred scoffed, rolling his eyes.

_Wow, he’s just as dumb as he looks._

Alfred turned around quickly, trying to see where that voice had come from. But there was no one around aside from Ivan and Francis.

_Look at his dumb face!_

The voices were all snickering and Alfred looked back at Ivan, who stopped as well.

“You hear the voices, too, right?” Alfred asked hesitantly.

“Yes…” Ivan said slowly.

_Are these really our Alices? I expected so much more than this! They look so useless!_

Ivan slowly looked down and Alfred did as well. The only thing down there were the flowers, so that means…

“No way…” Alfred muttered. Ivan knelt down to the ground, examining them closely.

“Are you…talking?” Ivan asked hesitantly. Alfred would have said he looked like a crazy person, but then again this place was so weird already…

_Duh. You might be the smarter one but it’s not by a lot._

“Smarter one?” Alfred snapped.

“Not by much?” Ivan asked, sounding genuinely offended.

“Hey, what the hell’s that supposed to mean?” Alfred asked Ivan, who just shrugged. Alfred glared at him, arms crossed over his chest.

_They can’t even get along, how are they supposed to fulfill the prophecy?_

_And I heard the Cat actually had faith in them._

“Who is the Cat?” Ivan asked.

“No one you want to be acquainted with,” Francis said stiffly, still standing in the patch of grass without flowers.

_The March Hare is scared!_

_The Hatter isn’t here to make him feel safe now!_

“The Hatter will be here in a few minutes,” Francis said pointedly. “If you go too far, you can expect we’ll drag you back here.”

“Yeah, no offense, Franny, but you’re not exactly the strongest guy,” Alfred said. This may not be, apparently, the Francis he knew, or whatever the hell that was, but he looked just about the same. And his scrawny ass definitely couldn’t hold his own against Alfred.

“Oh, I’m not talking about me,” Francis said simply.

_The Hatter’s gonna get you!_

Alfred shivered at the sing-song voices of the flowers. He briefly wondered if they had faces and he just couldn’t see them, but decided not to linger on that thought for too long. He was almost happy he couldn’t see.

“I wonder what’s so scary about this Hatter?” Ivan mused quietly, either talking to himself or intending for only Alfred to hear.

“Please,” Alfred scoffed, “a place where flowers talk and guys have bunny ears can’t be that scary of a place.”

“They are more than willing to kill us if given the chance,” Ivan said. “I’d think through your steps a bit more carefully.”

“So, what, you just wanna hang around and let them boss us around until they figure out which Alice is which?” Alfred snapped. “I wanna try to find my way back home, thank you very much! And once I get back, I’m going to stay as far away from mirror as possible so that I’m not forced to see your stupid face ever again.”

“You can’t even see it,” Ivan said simply.

_It’s obvious who’s for the Hatter and who’s for the Queen._

The flowers were quiet this time. Francis hadn’t heard them. Alfred turned his attention back down the plants, hoping for some kind of explanation. But the flowers didn’t speak up again. It was almost eerily quiet. Ivan looked at Alfred, who bit his lip. As much as Alfred didn’t like Ivan, it was kind of obvious that they were both from the same place. They both did get dragged here through a mirror, if Alfred could even trust his story. But that meant that they were strangers to this place. As far as Alfred could tell, this guy was from Earth, which meant he was just as intimidated by being in this freaky place as Alfred.

“You really are an idiot,” a familiar voice snapped and Alfred quickly turned around to the source of it. No way… “You really just let them go? Do you have any idea what kind of trouble they could get into? Especially this close to Cat territory?”

“Oh, relax, they haven’t gone anywhere,” Francis sighed. A man was walking towards him and, though Alfred’s blurry vision, he could clearly see that he had a black top hat on, along with what looked like a ratty, dirty suit. But that posture and that voice, that hair, those huge eyebrows that Alfred could see, even from this far away.

“ _Arthur?_ ” Alfred asked, dumbfounded.

“How many of these people do you know?” Ivan asked curiously, standing up.

“That is not my name,” Arthur said pointedly, turning towards them. This Arthur was way crankier than the one Alfred knew. To be frankly honest, he sounded like an old man with a foul temper.

“I take it this must be the Hatter,” Ivan mused.

“This day seriously can’t get any weirder,” Alfred groaned.

“I take it you’ve scouted through the forest?” Francis asked curiously.

 _He’s so whipped_.

Alfred snorted. That was just like the real Francis. The flowers, again, were quiet enough that only Alfred and Ivan could hear them. Ivan just looked at him curiously, before letting out a sigh.

“Hopefully the Cats won’t decide to move at random,” Arthur said simply, glancing back the way he came. Alfred’s vision was blurry, but he could see an awful lot of green in that direction. “And the Queen isn’t close enough to be able to move. We need to get them to a safe location and figure out which one is ours.”

Alfred glanced at Ivan. He had a bad feeling about just following these guys, especially since Francis had said how willing they were to kill them. And this place was really starting to freak Alfred out. And he was chained to Ivan, so maybe he had an idea to get around this. Then again, Alfred wasn’t sure how well they would do in a world like this alone. With talking flowers a possibility, who knew what else could happen in this place?

Before Alfred could even ask Ivan a question, Arthur harshly turned his attention towards them. It apparently only took him a few seconds to come to the realization that at least Alfred was considering running for it. Arthur let out a sigh before holding his hand out towards them. He closed it into a tight fist and Alfred heard the chains of their shackles jingling. Arthur pulled his fist towards himself and the chain lurched forward, pulling both Alfred and Ivan roughly with it.

Alfred couldn’t help but stare with wide eyes as the chain went right into Arthur’s waiting hand. He glared harshly at them and, even without his glasses, Alfred could see the intimidatingly bright green color.

“From now on, you two will follow my instruction,” Arthur said clearly. “Disobey and I won’t be afraid to show you all of my strength. Have I made myself clear?”

“You know,” Alfred said with a nervous laugh, “if you’re trying to make friends with your Alice, this really doesn’t feel like the way to do it.”

“I’m not here to make friends,” Arthur said simply, releasing the chain. “I’m here to save my home and live up to my title.” He turned on his heel and started walking back to where he came from. Alfred and Ivan hesitated back with Francis, who let out a long sigh, slipping his hands into his pockets.

“Don’t let him discourage you too much,” Francis said, pushing them forward lightly as he began to walk as well. “He’s just found that the best leadership tactic is fear.”

“Yeah, and how well has that worked for him?” Alfred muttered quietly, hoping that the stick-in-the-mud wouldn’t hear anything.

“Ask that to his army,” Francis said simply.

Alfred and Ivan looked at each other warily. “Army?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again with the long chapters. Whew, I’m really feeling it, look at me go. Chapters will hopefully stay around this length of around 4,000 words a chapter. I kind of like it this way, it’s a challenge. And the slightly tweaked writing style is an adventure in itself.
> 
> Anyway, in case I didn’t make it clear enough, the Arthur and Francis inside this world aren’t the same people that Alfred knew. Different dimension stuff, I guess. Or however you view Alice in Wonderland stuff. Anyway, poor Alfred and Ivan don’t get along extremely well but it looks like they do have some stuff in common, like the fact that it seems like their lives are on the line in this crazy world. 
> 
> Anyway, that’s it for now. So I’ll see you all next time!


	3. Chapter 3

Alfred was surprisingly quiet as they walked through the forest. Ivan kept glancing at him curiously out of the corner of his eye, but Alfred just bit his lip occasionally, staring at the ground. Granted, Ivan didn’t know how bad Alfred’s eyesight was and there was no telling what he could actually see by looking around…There wasn’t much to look at anyway. There was a very clear dirt path that wound through the forest and neither Arthur nor Francis were even looking away from it. Ivan stared into the woods, but he couldn’t find anything of interest. They were dark trees with dark bark and dark leaves. A lot of leaves. Ivan couldn’t see further than a few feet in.

It wasn’t like it was giving Ivan bad vibes…but there was something…about it. Not bad or good…just a _feeling_ resonating from the forest.

Arthur marched confidently ahead of them, Francis behind them, maybe just in case they tried to run for it again. Ivan wondered if Francis had any magic powers like Arthur. Maybe he was just waiting for the right moment to use it. Arthur had used it as an intimidation tactic. Considering his small size in comparison to Alfred and Ivan, it was a good decision on his part. Ivan probably wouldn’t have considered even listening to him without it.

“I would stop looking, if I were you,” Francis offered, his quiet and smooth voice barely disturbing the peace around them. Ivan glanced back at him, confused. “There are rumors about the Cats. If they see you, they might just drag you in there and then you’ll never get out of this forest alive.”

“Stop feeding them fairytales,” Arthur said pointedly. Ivan stared at the back of his head, where his blonde hair was mostly covered by that strange top hat. It looked old, frayed around the edges, but with hardly a speck of dust on it. Ivan wanted to see if he could get a handle on this guy like the other two, but he couldn’t find anything to go off of. This man would be difficult to deal with…

“You’ve been rather quiet, Alfred,” Ivan said simply.

“I’m thinking,” Alfred said.

“Must be quite a feat for you,” Ivan said smugly. Alfred sent him a glare, but looked back at the ground shortly after.

“How much longer is this stupid forest?” Alfred asked.

“It’s going to be a day and a half journey from here,” Arthur said. “And if I hear one complaint about it from you-”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Alfred said. “You’ll do your magic mumbo jumbo on us.”

“ _Don’t_ disrespect it,” Arthur snapped. Alfred shrugged.

“I’m still on impressed,” Alfred said. “I won’t even get to see this army of yours until tomorrow or later. How about you show me what you’ve really got? Unless you really are scared of a stupid forest.”

Arthur stopped walking and Ivan stopped beside Alfred. Francis sighed, standing where he was. Ivan gave Alfred a questioning look, but now Alfred was looking up at Arthur.

“You’re not even man enough to give me my glasses,” Alfred said with a small smile. He was confident in something…what was it?

Or, maybe, just maybe…he was just an idiot.

“Right now,” Arthur said slowly, like he was talking to a child, “the absolute safest place you can be in this world is by my side. You have no right to tell me how this world works or how safe you may or may not be. Or how scared I am of _anything_.”

“Then how about you teach me?” Alfred offered.

Arthur clenched his fist tightly, and the chain clanked between them. Ivan sent Alfred a glare. Whatever the fuck this kid thought he was doing was a terrible idea. He really was an idiot, wasn’t he? Ivan felt his hands twitch, but that was mostly because it had been a really long time since his last cigarette. There had been so much excitement going on, Ivan had nearly forgotten, but it was getting hard to forget.

“You might be an Alice, but that does not keep you safe,” Arthur said. “The Queen has magic herself, different from mine. The Cats, too. The Queen could kill you with mere words, the Cat has the ability to make you forget reality. If you want to run into that forest and into their hands, I won’t stop you. The Queen still wants her Alice, but the Cats don’t have one to claim. They’ll likely kill you both where you stand.”

“And you’re willing to take that risk?” Alfred asked.

“I’m confident you aren’t,” Arthur said. They stood in silence, Ivan’s fingers twitching even more for the box of cigarettes in his pocket. Nothing other than the chains moved and the stress slowly started to leave Ivan’s tense body. If Arthur really was going to live up to his threat, he would have done it already. He was just using scare tactics.

“You underestimate just how stupid I can be,” Alfred said.

“Apparently so can I.” Ivan sighed. Alfred glanced at him, a look on his face telling Ivan to be patient. If this was how Alfred was going to act their entire time together, Ivan might just punch him unconscious by the end of the night. Some good peace and quiet would actually be quite nice.

“The Queen can kill me and the Cats can take away reality,” Alfred continued, “but what can you do, _Arthur_?”

“ _That is not my name_ ,” Arthur snapped, slamming his fist towards the ground. The chain yanked down, forcing Alfred and Ivan onto their knees. The chain stayed on the ground, no matter how much Ivan tried to tug against it. That feeling was back…

“Hatter,” Francis said carefully.

“Don’t you dare,” Arthur hissed at him before turning his attention back to the two on the ground. Ivan was going to kill Alfred. “Both of you will be quiet until we get you to a safe location. I will find out which Alice is mine, and then I will kill the other one. And I swear if it turns out that you,” he glared at Alfred, “are for the Queen, I will smile as I end your life.”

Alfred nodded, but the second Arthur turned his back, he cracked a happy smile. Ivan gave him a confused look as Arthur released the chain between them. Arthur had already started walking ahead and Ivan stood up faster than Alfred, pulling him up roughly.

“Don’t be an ass,” Alfred snapped, glaring at him.

“You should take your own advice,” Ivan said. Arthur barely glanced back at them, apparently trying to enforce his quiet rule. Francis walked behind them as they continued their previous pace. Ivan absently looked into the forest as he reached for a cigarette. He was incredibly curious about these Cats now…

“Great, I’m chained to a guy that kills his lungs?” Alfred scoffed as he noticed Ivan pull out his lighter from one pocket, the cigarette from another. Ivan rolled his eyes, putting the cigarette between his lips. Alfred just pouted, looking away as Ivan lit it. “Gross…”

“Keep your opinions to yourself,” Ivan said, taking in a breath. It felt good, relaxing, especially after all that had happened. Ivan thought briefly about the amount of cigarettes he had left in that box…There was only a handful left…God, he hoped he wouldn’t be here for long…

“That’s a very interesting device,” Francis said, looking at his lighter as he slid it back into his pocket. “It creates fire? It’s magic?”

“It’s just a lighter, dude, not that impressive,” Alfred scoffed.

“Don’t pout just because you didn’t bring anything magic with you,” Ivan said smugly. Alfred shot him a dark look and Ivan just smirked.

“It’s not magic,” Alfred said. “It’s science, okay? It actually makes fucking sense…”

Ivan just shrugged. His cigarette was almost nearly down to the butt. He wanted to enjoy each cigarette for all it was worth if he was running this low…Ivan actually didn’t mind the idea of magic or anything mystical. He rather…enjoyed the idea of it. His whole childhood he’d fervently believed in magic, got angry at people who denied it. It was only when he got older that he learned to deny it, despite the fact that the world would have been better, happier, if he still allowed for magic to exist. And now it did again. He held a lot of comfort in that.

Alfred, on the other hand, seemed like someone who liked the idea of science as an explanation to everything. Ivan was almost surprised that Arthur’s magic didn’t frighten him more.

After a short while of silence, Ivan smoked through the cigarette, flicking it onto the dirt path and making sure that he extinguished it with his shoe. Francis seemed to be restless behind them, until he finally opened his mouth and asked a question.

“Who’s going to meet us on the other side of the forest?” Francis asked curiously.

“The Door Mouse,” Arthur responded quickly. “Dee and Dum will meet us halfway to the mansion from there, and the Caterpillar will meet us there to start asking questions and investigating. The sooner we can get through this, the better.”

“Are we sure even the Caterpillar can figure this out?” Francis asked. “Not even the prophecy gave us many hints, and he doesn’t know everything.”

“We need to try,” Arthur snapped.

It was awkwardly quiet after that. Francis unsure of what to say, Arthur too stiff to talk. Meanwhile, Alfred had drifted back into quiet, maybe doing more of that dangerous thinking of his. Ivan was more than happy to lapse into quiet. Ivan wasn’t normally used to talking with people he didn’t know, especially for this long and alone. Sometimes he would even have his sisters to help him through situations like this…but he was alone.

And it looked like he was going to be alone for a long time.

* * *

Alfred was a fan of camping, sure. He did it all the time with his family. He could sent up a tent like a pro and even knew how to take care of himself in the event of an animal attack.

This?

This wasn’t camping.

This was sitting in the middle of a dirt road handcuffed to a stranger and sleeping alongside two guys that looked just like his friends but definitely weren’t his friends.

This was awkward.

Alfred stared up at the sky, at least the little sliver that he could see through the trees. It took a whole lot of convincing and pestering to convince Arthur to stop for the night. If he had it his way, they wouldn’t have stopped, just gone straight through the night. Alfred might be physically fit, but that certainly didn’t mean that he was able to walk for more than a day. Not to mention the stupid shoes they’d strapped onto him were uncomfortable as hell.

Ivan was still sitting up, looking into the forest, despite the fact that it was practically pitch black around them. Francis and Arthur, on the other hand, were fast asleep. At least, they looked fast asleep. Then again, Arthur didn’t seem like the kind of person to sleep anyway. Took up too much of his _valuable time_.

“You know, considering I’m going to be chained to you,” Alfred grumbled, “you should probably get some sleep or it’ll be me dragging you around tomorrow.”

“I’m not tired,” Ivan said simply. God, this guy was weird.

“You could at least look at something interesting,” Alfred said, turning onto his side.

“Like what? The stars?” Ivan asked.

“What? You don’t like the stars?” Alfred asked, sitting upright now. No one insulted the stars! They were fucking awesome!

“They are amusing, for a while,” Ivan said, glancing up. “They don’t amount to much.”

“Fuck you,” Alfred snapped, but made sure to keep his voice down just in case Arthur tried to get pissy. “Amusing? Who the hell even talks like that?”

“Let me guess, you want to be an astronaut?” Ivan asked, chuckling slightly. Alfred glared at him. “Or is in an engineer? Either way, those dreams won’t amount to much.”

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Alfred asked.

“Nothing is wrong with me,” Ivan said simply. “I’ve just seen what happens when you go through life obsessed with the stars and try to reach them.”

“Wow, cliché much?” Alfred sighed. “You’re a real asshole, you know that? Maybe you just didn’t fucking try hard enough.”

Ivan paused for a moment and took a deep breath, looking into the forest again. “Maybe I didn’t.”

“Go to sleep,” Alfred said, lying back on his side again. Ivan was just so…so…infuriating! What the hell was with this guy? One of the first damn things he even says to Alfred is that he’s annoying! And on top of all of that he smokes and he spouts bullshit like not following your dreams and all that bullshit. God! Alfred wanted to strangle him! Why did he have to be handcuffed to the most annoying guy on Earth? If everything went as _normal_ , Alfred wouldn’t have even seen this guy. He was fucking Russian and Alfred probably never would have left America and they would never have met.

And then Alfred would actually be happy. And yet, he was handcuffed to a guy that gave up reaching for the stars years ago. A massive pessimist that smokes and likes to be annoying.

“Why did you antagonize him?” Ivan asked curiously. “Arthur, I mean.”

Alfred glanced over at the two others. It certainly looked like they were sleeping.

“I wanted to test out a theory,” Alfred said.

“Which was what?” Ivan asked. By all means, Alfred probably didn’t look his best during that. Especially not when Arthur dragged them to the ground.

“There wasn’t anything else he could use his magic on,” Alfred said. “He’s afraid of this forest because of these Cats and so, aside from you, me, and Francis, all he really had were these shackles. So I made him angry to see something. He said if we fought against him, he would make us pay. If he can really move objects and control them, he could have moved me. He could have made me kneel without using the shackles but he didn’t. I don’t think he can use his magic on us.”

“Why?” Ivan asked.

“I don’t know,” Alfred admitted. “We’ve got three different big guns here. The Hatter, The Queen, and the Cats, which I assume count as one person. And then there’s us, the Alices. From what I can tell, we’re just as big, if not bigger, than those three. If they have some kind of magic thing going for them, then we probably do, too. What if they can’t use their magic on us?”

“That’s…a very big assumption to make,” Ivan said.

“But it’s not unfounded,” Alfred said. He sat up again. “Look, big guy. We don’t have to get along, but as long as we’re tied at the wrist, we’re gonna need to work together, support each other and all that shit. And, personally, I’m a good guy and I don’t wanna see you killed. Is that one thing we can have each other’s backs for?”

“Yes,” Ivan said slowly. “I don’t want you to be killed, either.”

“Good,” Alfred said. “Then we need to figure out what the fuck we’re gonna do.”

“We won’t get anywhere in this forest,” Ivan said. “If the Hatter is afraid of what’s in there, we don’t need to be involved with it.”

“And what makes you think where they’re taking us is any safer?” Alfred asked. “We’ve got a Door Mouse and a…a Caterpillar coming to greet us. God, if Francis has fucking rabbit ears what else are we gonna see? Who else are we gonna see? I mean…what if it’s not just my friends here? What if your friends are here?”

“I don’t have friends,” Ivan said.

“You just get weirder and weirder.” Alfred shook his head. “Look, I wanna get out of this as soon as possible, with the least amount of people getting hurt. I don’t think anything’s gonna happen tomorrow so…we can try again then. But think of a plan or something that we can go off of. Alright, big guy?”

“Of course.” Now, Ivan lied down, back turned to Alfred, who lied down as well, back turned. “Do you…really think I’m weird?”

“I mean, you haven’t exactly been acting _normal_ ,” Alfred muttered. He paused for a moment. “Why?”

“It is nothing,” Ivan said. “Go to sleep.”

“You, too.”

Finally, quiet. The only noise around them was breathing, some even, some uneven. Alfred felt himself getting more and more tired. A lot had happened that day and a lot of walking. Before Alfred fell asleep, he briefly thought about how he hoped Ivan was getting some sleep, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not a lot was going to happen this chapter, so it wasn’t incredibly long. Everything that needed to happen happened and I didn’t really see a point in going onto the next day. Some important stuff happened between Alfred and Ivan, which is always good. And we got a teeny sneak peek into the other stuff going on in this world. I’m pretty damn excited about everything that’s going on, so yeah.
> 
> See you next time!


	4. Chapter 4

“Can we take a break?” Alfred whined, but Arthur didn’t even look back at him. Alfred pouted, glaring at that stupid fucking hat. As far as Alfred knew, the guy didn’t even take it off to sleep, the weird fucker. “My feet hurt!”

“You need to learn to stop complaining,” Ivan said pointedly and Alfred turned his glare over to him. He couldn’t wait to find a way to get as far away from that asshole as possible. Especially after last night. Seriously, what kind of guy just tramples on the dreams of others like that?

“Fuck off,” Alfred said distastefully and Ivan set his jaw, looking back into the forest as he always did. “Look, how much longer do we have to walk? You said a day, right?”

“A day without that pointless break we took,” Arthur said. Francis sighed heavily at the back. Alfred rolled his eyes, suppressing a groan. “I’d definitely prefer it if you went back to silence.”

Alfred scoffed. “Make me, magic boy.”

Arthur faltered and Alfred smirked. Ivan jabbed him in the stomach with his elbow. Alfred’s smirk fell quickly and he glared once again in Ivan’s direction. Everyone stayed in painfully awkward silence as their feet shuffled along the dirt path. Suddenly, Alfred noticed something just beyond Ivan’s head, in the forest. Everything was still blurry, but he could at least tell one thing out of it…it was blue.

Alfred knew a pond when he saw one and it was the first thing of water he’d seen this whole trip. All of a sudden, he grew keenly aware of his thirst from this stupid journey. It was also the only color he’d seen in this whole forest…

“What’s that?” Alfred decided to ask. Ivan turned to find what Alfred had seen, but just shot him a confused look.

“Don’t let it fool you,” Francis said. “The forest lies in an attempt to trap you. Set one foot beyond the path and the Cats will take you.”

“Don’t believe those superstitions,” Arthur said pointedly. “You haven’t even _seen_ the Cats before. They have better things to do than snatch up strangers.”

“Then why are you so afraid of the forest?” Alfred asked.

“Well, they aren’t lying about that part,” Arthur said. “The forest changes constantly, not just over time but to each person. This path was created a long time ago by the Hatter, Queen, and Cat. It has enough magic in it so that it is the only thing here unaffected. The only way you will get out of this forest alive is if you follow it and don’t step off. The second you do, who knows where you’ll end up.”

“This forest can’t be that big,” Alfred said.

“I don’t think anyone’s bothered to try mapping it,” Francis mused. “Then again, that would be useless in the first place. The boundaries are always moving when no one’s looking.”

“Nice place you got here,” Alfred muttered under his breath. Alfred looked back to Ivan, who was still staring longingly into the forest, is if he wanted to just run in there and never look back. Alfred narrowed his eyes at him, but stayed moving forward. They’d already figured out Ivan was stronger, though not by much. If Alfred really tried, he could probably get his way… Alfred experimentally pulled lightly on the chain and Ivan looked back at him.

Alfred gave a questioning look as they caught each other’s eyes and Ivan gave him one in return. Alfred rolled his eyes, simply looking forward. Well, if Ivan didn’t want to talk about it, Alfred wasn’t gonna press anything. Annoying bastard.

It was quiet for a while after that. Alfred couldn’t think of anything else really creative to use to annoy anyone and Francis wasn’t about to talk much with Arthur’s permission, it seemed. And Ivan liked quiet, so he wasn’t about to speak, either. And Alfred wasn’t about to let himself get insulted again, so he decided to stay quiet until he had something else clever to say.

On the downside, that meant that Alfred got really bored really fast. Without the little pond around anymore, there wasn’t anything interesting to look at… So, Alfred decided to do what he always did when he was bored. He started humming that tune that was always stuck in his head. At first, no one took any notice, so Alfred just went on his merry way.

It took maybe ten minutes before Alfred noticed that someone else was humming along with him. He stopped humming in shock, staring at Ivan, who apparently hadn’t noticed that he was humming as well. The same fucking song. He was just looking into the forest, humming the song that Alfred thought no one else had ever heard before. Ivan paused when he saw that Alfred was staring at him.

“Is something wrong?” Ivan asked. “Or are you just that easily distracted?”

Alfred glanced at Arthur to see if he was paying attention and he was actually kind of surprised that Arthur’s head was minutely turned towards them. He knew some significance to that song, which meant that the two of them would have to keep their knowledge of it secret.

“It’s nothing,” Alfred said, looking at the round. “Your stupid face just distracted me.”

“Oh, so I’m distracting?” Ivan asked amusedly. Alfred clenched his jaw, looking up to glare at Ivan and retort, but he stopped when he saw Ivan looking ahead in shock.

Alfred barely turned in time to see a figure running across the opening of the forest in front of them. Surprisingly, they had finally reached the end of the forest and Alfred hadn’t even noticed. What had apparently attracted Ivan’s attention was a man running by, looking inside the forest and directly at them. Alfred couldn’t see many details about the guy without his glasses, but he was close enough that Alfred could clearly see two rabbit ears sticking up in the air from the guy’s head.

“Feliks?” Ivan’s voice was quiet, disbelieving. Finally, some guy appeared that Ivan knew. The guy ran by awful quickly and, when Alfred turned towards Ivan, he was almost shocked to see the expression on the guy’s face. Alfred had only really seen Ivan in a handful of moods, and they didn’t exactly have a wide range of emotions. Now, however, Alfred saw a few very clear emotions trace across his face, too fast to be readable…

“Damn,” Arthur cursed under his breath. “They found us sooner than I thought they would.”

“We need to check on the Door Mouse,” Francis said hurriedly. “Who knows what the Rabbit did to him.”

“I’ll go,” Arthur said pointedly. “Get them safely to your mansion. I’ll be there shortly.” With that, he ran out of the forest, leaving Alfred and Ivan alone with Francis.

“What’s the big deal about that guy?” Alfred asked Francis. Apparently Ivan hadn’t recovered yet, either. Just who was that man to him?

“He’s a scout for the Queen,” Francis said seriously, walking them to the edge of the forest. “Stay here, I need to make sure she didn’t send anyone else. Hopefully, she decided not to send the King, otherwise we’ll be in big trouble. Especially without Hatter.” He walked past the trees in front of them and Alfred looked at Ivan, carefully trying to figure out his expression. Ivan was thinking hard about something and Alfred had to find out what it was about. He’d have to bide his time until they were alone…

Before long, Francis came back and wordlessly nodded for them to follow him. For now, Alfred decided to follow him. Ivan seemed to be mindlessly going along with what was going on while he still recovered from seeing the Rabbit, or Feliks. Alfred did have to admit Ivan had a point earlier about not knowing this place. For now, Alfred had to trust the people that lived here and try to figure things out through them.

Alfred had to practically pull Ivan along with him as he followed Francis hurriedly out of the forest. It looked like there was some kind of town nearby with a lot of shops and homes, and nearby was also an incredibly huge house, Francis’ mansion probably. Alfred didn’t have a lot of time to take in his surroundings, not like he could do a very good job of it without his glasses anyway, and soon Francis all but shoved them inside of the mansion.

One thing Alfred was able to tell from being out in that town was that no one was around. It was so quiet out there you could hear a pin drop. Inside the mansion, however, music could clearly be heard floating through the big open area they had walked into. It sounded…strange. The music definitely wasn’t coming through speakers…it wounded almost muffled, scratchy. Did someone have a record player here?

“We don’t have any time,” Francis mused, pulling out a little watch from his pocket as he continued walking. Alfred followed him, Ivan still lost in thought and blindly following behind them. Alfred gritted his teeth, this was starting to get annoying. “You’ll stay here, where it’s safe. After we’ve assessed this situation, we’ll have someone come for you.” They stopped in front of a fairly inconspicuous door, which Francis opened for them.

Inside, it looked just like any normal room. A bit bed, a dresser, desk, all of the important stuff. Except a window. Was this like a safe room?

Alfred just nodded to Francis as he stepped into the room. Francis didn’t offer any parting words, simply closing the door behind them. Alfred glared at Ivan, who was staring in thought at the floor ahead of them.

“Ivan,” Alfred said pointedly. He was going to figure this out right now. He couldn’t have a partner that would just see someone and fall apart like this, now could he? Ivan didn’t respond, however, still deep in thought. “Ivan, what the hell?!” Alfred yanked hard on the chain, making sure Ivan had to face him and they finally looked each other in the eye.

“I’m sorry,” Ivan said numbly.

“That’s really all you have to say?” Alfred asked. “Come on, dude, you knew that guy. Just like how I know Francis and Arthur. So who was he? Why’s he making you like this?”

“It does not matter,” Ivan said, looking away again.

“No, don’t hit me with that bullshit,” Alfred scoffed. “Look at me when I’m talking to you, asshole.”

“Then try this,” Ivan said coldly, still not looking at him. “It is not any of your business.”

“I’m chained to you, jerk,” Alfred snapped. “Look, we’re never gonna see each other after this. I don’t care about whatever the fuck is going on with you, but if you’re about to just freeze up like this every time you see this guy-”

“I won’t,” Ivan said stiffly. Alfred narrowed his eyes at him.

Alfred groaned. “God, you’re such an asshole! I’m not keeping any secrets from you so what’s the big deal?”

“I don’t just blindly trust strangers,” Ivan said. “Especially not strangers as obnoxious as you.”

“Obnoxious?” Alfred balked. “Hey, sorry, but I wasn’t the one that fucking trampled all over someone else’s dreams last night. Or the one that keeps smiling at the weirdest shit. You’re so fucking creepy! One second I think I can handle being your partner, but the next I know for sure I can’t work with you.”

“If it’s any consolation, I know I cannot work with you,” Ivan said pointedly. “I would rather be partnered with someone who knows when and how to be quiet. Or perhaps have anything of consequence come out of their mouth, unlike you.”

“Well, hey, news flash here, buddy!” Alfred snapped, holding up his wrist and pointing to the shackles. “We’re chained to each other! Whether we like it or not, we have to work together so the _least_ you can do is stop being such a fucking asshole!”

“Maybe you should try being easier to work with,” Ivan said. Alfred clenched his jaw, glaring at Ivan. He was about damn ready to fight, if that was what Ivan wanted. Alfred wasn’t the one with the problem here, everything here was all Ivan’s fault. What was with him? He was so determined to keep that damn secret of his…

“You know who’s easy to work with?” Alfred snapped. “People that don’t keep secrets.”

Ivan twitched slightly and, in a matter of less than a second, Ivan turned on him and Alfred instinctively took a step back, right into the door behind him. Ivan slammed his free hand onto the wood, right next to Alfred’s head. Alfred couldn’t help but flinch, staring with wide eyes as Ivan gave him a harsh, narrow glare.

“Drop it.” Ivan’s voice was dark, deep, and definitely very threatening. Alfred’s heart hammered in his chest as he stared into dark violet. Ivan was stronger than him, could definitely overpower him, and now Alfred had made him angry. Not irritated like his original plan was, not annoyed like Alfred had a knack for doing…No, Ivan was pissed. Why was Ivan so intent on keeping this secret?

“Fine,” Alfred said slowly, taking a deep breath before he said what he had planned next. His hands were trembling, he was so nervous. This might just get him punched in the face, but it was worth saying. “But if I’m seeing people I know, so will you. Whatever the hell you’re hiding, it’s gonna bite you in the ass later.” Alfred was ready to flinch or block or anything he needed to do, but Ivan just stared at him. The anger wasn’t leaving him and Ivan was stiff, slowly moving away from Alfred, almost mechanically.

“It already has,” Ivan muttered. He was taking deep breaths, trying to go back to at least looking calm. Alfred could already tell it wasn’t going to work. Ivan was…trembling. His hands were in fists as he stared off into space, trying to work through whatever his thoughts were at the moment. Alfred sighed heavily.

“Look, big guy,” Alfred said, sliding his hands into his pockets to at least hide the fact that he was also still shaking, “you should, uh, get your anger out on something, Preferably not me, you know…You still need me to walk around.”

“What are you saying?” Ivan asked coldly.

“Go punch a pillow or something.” Alfred shrugged. “I couldn’t care less if you punched a wall but I’d prefer you don’t bleed over this stupid argument, alright? And we’re kinda chained together so it’s not like you can go and let off steam on your own, you know?”

“I don’t need to-”

“Then smoke, okay?” Alfred sighed. “We need to figure out a way out of this, okay? And nothing’s going to work while you’re all pissed off and riled up. I don’t care, just do what you gotta do.”

Ivan took a deep breath, his eyes darting around the room. His fists clenched and unclenched as he observed. The bed looked decently puffy, it could probably hold up to a lot of damage. This would also be pretty good for Alfred to see just how strong Ivan was. Granted, angry strength was different from, say, desperate strength, or anything else, but it was a place to start.

Ivan trudged over to the bed and Alfred followed behind, making sure the chain between them had enough slack so that it didn’t slow down Ivan and possibly piss him off more. God, Alfred wished he knew what was going on inside the Russian’s head.

Alfred flinched when Ivan first hit the mattress with his fist. It made a dull thud as the bottom of the bed moved slightly from the force. Alfred stood a safe distance away from Ivan, looking in the other direction. He knew if he was blowing off steam, he wouldn’t want someone else to be watching him. Ivan hit the mattress for a few minutes before he stopped, panting slightly from the exertion.

Alfred looked over, examining the indent in the mattress as Ivan absently looked at his hand, placed gently on top of it.

“Well, uh, on the bright side,” Alfred spoke up (God, he really needed to learn when to shut up, didn’t he?), “now I know you can definitely kick someone’s ass if I need you to.”

“I don’t think either of us want it to come to that,” Ivan said.

“Oh, yeah, right, sure,” Alfred said, nodding as he looked away, at the wall or anything he could find remotely interesting. He cleared his throat without the intention to say anything, just fill up the quiet air between them. This was…awkward. Great. Just what they needed. Awkwardness.

* * *

Alfred didn’t like being in the quiet, that much was clear. He got fidgety, twitchy. And now that they weren’t walking through the forest, Alfred had nothing to do. The two had decided to sit on the bed, which was definitely big enough to fit them both, should they need it. Alfred had his back turned to Ivan, but he couldn’t stop moving. Either he was twiddling this thumbs or rubbing at his neck or tapping on his knee; he wouldn’t sit still.

On the bright side, he’d stopped trying to make conversation.

He apparently enjoyed seeing just what buttons he could press until someone snapped. Ivan made it very clear what happened when he pressed too many buttons. Maybe that was why Alfred was so awkward now, it was at least partly the reason why Ivan was so awkward. He’d always tried to make sure no one around him saw him angry, no matter how long he’d be seeing them. He’d had enough of being known as violent and creepy in his life.

He didn’t exactly want Alfred to know him as someone with a short temper, either…But on the other hand, he couldn’t let Alfred see him as a pushover that would just apologize after things grew awkward. Ivan wasn’t sure exactly what to do in this situation. He could easily wait for things to start happening again, then this whole thing would diffuse itself.

Ivan could wait, easily. Alfred, on the other hand…Well, he just might crack before long. That would surely be amusing to see. Then again…he’d already made some sort of an apology before.

Ivan sighed, staring at his hand as he made a fist. Exactly how close had he gotten to punching Alfred? He slowly relaxed his hand, staring into his palm. He…didn’t want to hurt anyone and yet…

Just one look at Feliks had his mind racing back to memories he wished he could forget. It nearly had his personality back where it was then, too. Nearly had him hurting more people. But he didn’t want to hurt anyone else.

Just who else would he be seeing in this crazy place?

Before Ivan could go too far into his own thoughts, the door opened and both he and Alfred perked up and looked in that direction. Francis stood in the doorway with a raised brow, looking as amused as ever. In fact, he almost looked disappointed. What did he have to be disappointed about? They were just in a room together…Had he been hoping that they would actually fight each other. Probably…

“Well, well,” Francis said, “I’m surprised neither of you even bothered to try the door. There is no lock on it, after all.”

“Yeah, well,” Alfred snorted, “with the way you guys were talking about that Rabbit guy, I figured it wasn’t a good idea to go around without any help.”

“Luckily, Door Mouse is fine,” Francis informed. “The Rabbit just left him alone. He was just a scout, but that means the Queen knows you’re both here, which is also a problem for us.”

“Does that mean we have to walk again?” Alfred groaned. Ivan sighed heavily, hoping that they were able to find a way apart from each other soon. While he may not want Alfred dead, he also didn’t want to be attached to him for much longer.

“Of course not,” Francis chimed with a smile. “It just means we need to enhance our defenses. We at least know the Queen won’t come here, she never does anything on her own, which means we only need to fear the King.”

“Is this King someone we should be afraid of?” Ivan asked carefully.

“She’s…” Francis mused. “A handful. But we’ll manage. For now, we should at least continue with our original plan and take you to the Caterpillar.” He nodded into the hallway and Alfred was the first to stand up. This was better than doing nothing, regardless. And if Arthur really wanted them to go, he could find some way to force them, especially now that he had more objects than the shackles to move them with.

As Ivan followed Francis through the mansion, he started to look around. The first time they were lead through, it had happened too fast for him to take much in, aside from the fact that this mansion was better taken care of than the first one. That music was still playing, though Ivan couldn’t find the source as they walked through the main hall close to the entrance. He took notice of the chandelier above their heads, where he could see lightbulbs, but they were flickering, like they had an unstable power source.

The music wound down around them as Francis led them through a large door and Ivan furrowed his brow in confusion. They walked into a sitting room with furniture that looked like it was from the Victorian Era in England, but was impressively well taken care of. It looked brand new…On a coffee table in front of an immaculate couch, not only were there a scattered collection of chipped teacups, but also a number of objects Ivan would have never expected; gears, tools, electrical cords. From the shackles, Ivan would have guessed that wherever they were, they weren’t as advanced as where Ivan and Alfred had come from. But they had electricity…

The windows in the room were as tall as the ceilings, but shut tight and with white curtains mostly covering them, but allowing in more than enough light. Ivan was even able to notice that some of the equipment on the table was also discarded on the floor, though most of them were obviously broken. In the far corner, stood an unfamiliar man with black hair and Ivan could see him turning the handle on a gramophone. The music slowly wound back up and filled the air once again.

“My apologies for the mess,” Francis mused, examining the table, “it seems our dear Door Mouse has gotten caught up in another project.”

“I am sure he’ll be back to continue working on it soon,” the man at the gramophone said, his voice soft and patient. Ivan didn’t recognize him…He looked at Alfred, who held a surprised expression, but not one of shock. They’d both gotten past being completely surprised by anything in this world.

The man turned around with a calm, fairly peaceful expression on his face, but the most distracting features were the two antennae sticking up, out of his hair. This must be the Caterpillar, then. He was dressed fairly well, nearly as well as Arthur had been. He had on a carefully groomed suit, but his jacket was discarded onto a nearby arm chair, leaving him with just the dress shirt, vest, and pants, all but the shirt a dark brown. Francis went up to talk to the man and Ivan leaned a little closer to Alfred.

“You know him?” Ivan asked, hoping they’d gotten past their awkward relationship without anyone having to apologize.

“My friend Kiku,” Alfred muttered. “I’d say he’s practically harmless, but then again I would have said the same thing about Arthur. So far, he seems about as calm as normal. We might be able to get more information on the world through him.”

Ivan nodded, relaxing slightly now that he knew things were sort of back to normal with Alfred. And now that he knew at least another person didn’t exactly want to kill them.

“Well, I’m going to see how Arthur is doing with that plan,” Francis said, pulling out that pocket watch again. He turned back the way he came. “I hope you two won’t give him too much trouble.”

“I’ll try,” Alfred mused, watching as Francis left the room.

“If you two would like to have some tea, I could make some,” Kiku said briskly. He was stiff and awkward, obviously unused to talking to new people, but he was at least polite…

“I’m not really much of a tea person,” Alfred said, waltzing over to the couch and slumping down happily. Ivan followed absently, sitting down beside him. He almost wanted to accept the offer just to be polite, but there was no teapot in this room, meaning accepting the tea would just make him go out of his way.

“Thank you for the offer,” Ivan said, “but I’m okay without tea.”

Kiku nodded before sitting down on the armchair. He looked out the window for a short while, thinking about something. He was supposed to figure out which one of them was for the Hatter and which was for the Queen, so he must be wise…

Alfred let out a long groan. “If I knew we would just be sitting around in quiet, I would’ve stayed back in that room.”

“Don’t be annoying,” Ivan stated, jabbing Alfred in the side with his elbow.

“What?” Alfred whined. “It’s true. At least the Kiku I know isn’t this quiet…”

“What do you mean by that?” Kiku asked. The look in his eyes betrayed just how truly interested he was. “How do you…know my name?”

“Hell if I know how any of this works,” Alfred said with a shrug. “All I know is that I’ve been seeing people I know back from my world. Or…our world,” he said, looking at Ivan. “Actually, I’m not a hundred percent we’re from the same world.”

“I’d assume,” Ivan mused. “Considering you know that I’m Russian…What year is it? What’s the date?”

“You two can figure that out later,” Kiku interrupted them, looking at Alfred. “How do you know us?”

“Well, the people I’ve seen have been my friends,” Alfred said. “You, Arthur, and Francis are all friends from school.”

“Interesting,” Kiku mused. He then turned to Ivan. “Have you seen anyone you recognize?”

Ivan stiffened, unsure of what he should say. Obviously, the people here weren’t the people back home, so really there was no harm. Aside from Alfred…who was _maybe_ from the same world…So the only obstacle in the way was facing his own problems.

“You don’t need to answer that, I think I know,” Kiku said simply, with a small tinge of a smile. Ivan turned to stare at the cups left on the table. Well, he’d already given himself away just by not saying anything…

“Damn, you’re still just as good at reading people,” Alfred said with a smirk. He leaned back, hands laced behind his head. “So, then, Keeks, how exactly are you supposed to figure out which Alice is which?”

“Please don’t call me that,” Kiku said. “While I would prefer you to use my title, I don’t mind Kiku. On the matter of the Alice question, I’m not sure. Hatter seems to think a bit too highly of my abilities.”

“The flowers said they’d already figured it out,” Alfred said. That was true, though the possibility of that actually being true was rather low. Who knew how truthful those flowers actually were…

“The flowers never share their knowledge,” Kiku said, shaking his head. “No one has been able to get an answer out of them, except for maybe a previous Alice, though they show up so rarely they’re viewed as myths.” So they were a myth, then? Why was everyone so ready to accept that they really were Alices, then? “Though in this case, I highly doubt the flowers would give away their secret. They don’t have any alignment or loyalty to speak of. They’ll just make fun of you if you try to get answers out of them.”

“So then what is your plan?” Ivan asked. “I seems Arthur is intent on knowing as soon as possible who is who.”

“His anger is not my problem,” Kiku said pointedly. “At this point, it looks like it will be Francis’.”

Ivan decided to take a chance and change the subject to figure something out about this world. “I’ve been hearing about this prophecy. Could you tell us about it? Maybe it will bring us closer to the answers we’re looking for.”

“I’m afraid it’s not of much help,” Kiku mused. “ _A helper for The Queen and her rule, An Alice will prevent all that is cruel. Assistant for The Hatter and the people, An Alice will aid in the upheaval_.” He paused for a moment. “The lines contradict each other to the point where most were confused as to how it could only be one person. The line that has the most of my interest, however, would have to be; _With all of the players in their places, Only one will make sense of all the faces_.”

“So only one of us?” Alfred asked curiously.

“That must be why you thought there would only be one for so long,” Ivan said thoughtfully.

Alfred hummed, leaning forward as he thought carefully. “So with that wording, it looks like a revolution is going to happen with Arthur, then? The only problem is what it said about the Queen’s Alice. It’s not very clear… I would say helping the Queen gain a proper rule of her subjects, but with a revolution about to happen, I don’t see why it would also put that in…”

“Kiku, have you seen my-” An unfamiliar voice interrupted them and Ivan turned his attention to the door that had just opened. It was on the opposite end of the room that Francis had left them from and Ivan hadn’t thought much about it. The person that peeked inside had a number of things that stood out quite a bit.

Firstly, there were the ears of a mouse on top of his head, light brown in color to match his hair. The next thing Ivan noticed was the fact that this man looked…startlingly like Alfred. At the very least, they were related, if not practically the same person. The next thing Ivan noticed was the man’s attire. He was dressed only in slacks and a dress shirt, both of which were nearly covered in oil, along with his face, where only the outline of goggles, which hung around his neck, was left unscathed.

“Sorry,” the man said sheepishly, hiding a bit behind the door. This had to be the Door Mouse…

“Matt?” Alfred asked, standing up to look at the intruder. Ivan looked between them curiously. Everyone that was acquainted with the Hatter was someone Alfred knew. And if Alfred didn’t know Feliks, who was acquainted with the Queen…There was a pattern here. Ivan glanced at Kiku, wondering if he had possibly reached the same conclusion. This could be a clue when it came to finding out which Alice was which.

“H-How do you know my name?” the Door Mouse asked, hiding even more behind the door. Ivan could only see one of the young man’s eyes. Ivan noticed that his eye color was just minutely different from Alfred’s, just a bit more purple.

Alfred furrowed his brow just slightly before sitting back down.

“Sorry,” Alfred muttered. “You just look like someone I know.”

“Um,” the Door Mouse…Matt, looked at the ground, not looking anyone in the eye.

“What are you looking for, Matthew?” Kiku asked, his voice soft and kind. Considering the fact that both of them were using names, not titles, and their tones of voice, Ivan could tell that they were friends. Closer than anyone else Ivan had seen, anyway.

“Um…a tool,” Matthew said slowly and carefully. He was awkward and quiet, that much Ivan could tell. If he was related to Alfred, he was almost his exact opposite. Someone Ivan could actually tolerate to be around. He was almost whispering, though, which was a bit of a problem.

“Well, there are a few here,” Ivan offered, pushing open the envelope to see how much he could get away with. How quickly would he run and hide?

“Are you the…the A-Alices?” Matthew asked carefully.

“Yeah, dude,” Alfred said. “You don’t have to be scared, I promise, Ivan just looks like a creepy asshole. He’s really only an asshole.” Matthew laughed at that and Ivan glared at the back of Alfred’s head. While it was comforting to know that Alfred actually didn’t find him creepy, he didn't appreciate the insult.

“I’m sorry the Hatter made you move your project,” Kiku said as Matthew opened the door a little wider. Matthew held onto his own arm, almost like a bar of protection, as he minutely stepped forward. He kept a steady gaze on the ground, like he was afraid of making eye contact. If this really was Alfred’s blood relative, this was an interesting dynamic.

“Oh, um, I think actually, it works better wh-where he had me move it…” Matthew said, shifting his weight between his feet. He wanted to get out of this situation.

“You should probably get back to your project,” Kiku offered, standing up and picking up the tools, since it was obvious that Matthew wasn’t about to walk through the threshold of the doorway. He patiently walked them over to him, whispering something into one of his ears. Matthew nodded before darting away as quickly as possible, shutting the door behind him.

“How close is he to the person you know?” Ivan asked curiously.

“Well, my brother isn’t anywhere near that shy,” Alfred huffed. “What the hell do you guys do to him here, he looks like he’s fucking afraid of his own shadow.”

“Not our fault,” Kiku said. “The Hatter found him like this years ago. He doesn’t talk much, but we like each other’s company.”

“What happened to him?” Alfred asked curiously.

“From my understanding,” Kiku mused, “he managed to get himself lost in Cat territory while trying to run away from the Queen’s soldiers. He was unconscious when someone left him at the March Hare’s doorstep. I think it was one of the Cats that saved him, but everyone else doubts it.”

“Has anyone actually seen the Cats?” Ivan asked curiously. He was rather interested in these Cats and their alignment. They weren’t referenced in the prophecy, which meant that the Alices were seemingly useless to them. Where did they lie in this whole mess?

Kiku shook his head. “Not many, especially in this generation. They’ve become less and less involved with each generation and it seems like these Cats, especially, are staying out of everyone’s way.”

“I wonder why,” Ivan mused, leaning forward slightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two more characters introduced! Well, three, technically. Fun times! And a bit more of the plot explained, I guess. And some more of that sexual tension between Alfred and Ivan, of course. Because that’s always a fun time.
> 
> Anyway, that’s it for now so I’ll see y’all later!


	5. Chapter 5

Alfred was really starting to hate being attached to Ivan. He couldn’t be alone; he had to eat with him, it looked like Alfred would have to sleep with him. Hell, he couldn’t even take a piss without him. He was sure Ivan was getting annoyed with it, too.

Dinner was just as interesting as the rest of this world. The dining room had a massive table that nearly took up the whole length of the huge room. From what Alfred could tell, it was absolutely covered in teacups and saucers and any food that had to be brought in would have to be separated through all of the saucers. Alfred and Ivan were led there by Kiku, who easily sat down as if this room was the most normal thing in the world.

Alfred and Ivan were forced to sit next to each other and sat on the opposite side as Kiku and Alfred noticed that only one end of the table had a chair, obviously meant for the head. It was probably for Arthur, though Alfred doubted that he would even join them. He leaned back in his chair, almost afraid to say anything about the complete lack of food at the table yet. He took note of all the chairs, some at the table, some scattered around the room. This whole place was a mess…

His stomach growled, reminding him that he hadn’t actually eaten for almost two days now. He grumbled to himself. Could the food get here soon?

“You’re so impatient,” Ivan noted amusedly and Alfred shot him a glare.

“Sorry, not everyone can be fucking emotionless,” Alfred said simply. Ivan glared right back at him and Kiku sighed. The guy had been dealing with them for hours and, at this point, no matter how well they were getting along, everyone knew that they would start arguing after a few minutes. Alfred was honestly kind of amazed that Ivan hadn’t tried smoking again. Then again, Alfred had no idea how many cigarettes the guy had left. And if he was addicted…well this probably wasn’t very fun for him. Alfred smiled slightly at the idea.

Before Ivan could respond to him, Francis walked into the dining room happily with a fairly large tray in hand. Matthew followed after him, though his eyes never looked higher than the floor. Alfred was almost annoyed with “this version” of Matthew, who looked like he had barely enough confidence to fucking breathe in the same room as people he didn’t know. Sure, the Matthew Alfred was used to was reserved and kind of shy, but this was insane!

“I take it you had no luck today?” Francis asked Kiku happily as he fit his tray perfectly in a spot between cups and saucers like he’d done it countless times before. Alfred’s stomach growled almost violently at the sight of the food. Sure, he hadn’t seen anything like it, but it had been more than a day since his last meal, maybe two days. God, it felt like forever! Matthew did the same before quickly sitting down beside Kiku.

“It is going to be very difficult for us to find out which Alice is which,” Kiku said. Alfred really didn’t like the idea of actually figuring out who was what Alice. It meant that one of them was likely to be killed. Alfred may not like Ivan, but he didn’t want to see him killed.

“Well, you all must be hungry,” Francis said happily. “Go ahead and dig in.”

“Dude, fucking finally,” Alfred sighed in relief, all but launching himself at the food. It didn’t look like he’d be given any kind of plate, so he would have to deal with the saucers and those weird forks you get at tea parties. Not ideal, but it would have to do.

“Of course you’re so eager for food,” Ivan noted amusedly. Alfred shot him a glare, but happily scooped up all of the food he figured he needed, uncaring about how Ivan was gonna judge him. He had absolutely no idea what this food was, he just hoped it wasn’t some kind of poison.

“Is the Hatter not joining us?” Ivan asked curiously as Alfred sat back triumphantly with all of his food. The others were obviously waiting for Ivan to get his food, too, before they ate.

“He hasn’t eaten with us in years,” Francis mused. “I doubt he’ll start anytime soon.”

“Where are Tweedle Dee and Dum?” Kiku asked curiously. “Normally they are very excited to eat.”

“The Hatter sent them after the White Rabbit in hopes to actually kill him this time,” Francis said and Alfred definitely took note of how Ivan stiffened at the mention of that guy. What was his name again? Feliks? Just who was he to Ivan to get such a reaction out of him?

“I thought you said you weren’t very comfortable with killing people,” Alfred noted between bites of his food. Francis seemed to be almost happy about the idea of killing Feliks.

“Innocent people,” Francis clarified as he gathered his own food, sitting on Matthew’s other side. “The Rabbit is far from innocent. A fair number of our people have fallen by his hand.” Alfred looked at Ivan again to gauge his reaction. Ivan was staring at his plate in confusion. So that wasn’t what Feliks was actually like…Interesting…

“Matthew,” Kiku said after a short silence in the room. Matthew nearly jumped out of his skin and Alfred rolled his eyes. His brother so wasn’t like that… “Did you make sure that everything is set up for the shower?”

“Oh, um, y-yeah,” Matthew nodded.

“Ah, perfect,” Francis said happily, turning to Alfred and Ivan. “Then you two can use it first. I’m sure it would be nice to have a chance to relax after everything that’s happened to you. You do have showers where you come from, yes?”

“That’s at least one thing that’s normal here,” Alfred mused.

“At this rate,” Ivan muttered under his breath, “I doubt anything here is normal.” Alfred nearly snorted. He did have a point. Alfred didn’t doubt that this shower would have something about it that would surprise them.

On the bright side, the food was good and he wasn’t dead yet. Francis and Matthew were good cooks, even in an alternate universe. Dinner passed with Francis trying to make awkward conversation, but Alfred didn’t exactly learn anything knew about this world. He wasn’t quite sure what he could just ask out of nowhere without offending someone. And everyone here seemed to treat the idea of killing extremely lightly. Ivan also was acting pretty quietly. He was the one more willing to outright ask those kinds of questions, but it looked like he was biding his time as well.

It wasn’t long before the two of them were shown the way to a room where the shower supposedly was. Once inside, however, Alfred was kind of amazed by the contraption that greeted them. It was a mess of pipes that came in and out of the room, but ultimately ended in what he assumed was supposed to be the shower head, but it looked like it just dumped water onto the person standing underneath it. There wasn’t any special flooring or anything, but a little divider that separated the damp wood from the dry wood.

The moment in that room, however, made Alfred come to a realization. He brought up his wrist, staring hard at the shackles that wouldn’t be coming off anytime soon.

“Are you going to be awkward about this forever?” Ivan sighed heavily, pulling him closer to the shower. “I would prefer not to be near you if you continue to smell like that.”

“Like what?” Alfred snapped.

“Just strip so we can get this over with quickly,” Ivan said, examining the shower a little closer.

“Yeah, one little problem there, jackass,” Alfred said, holding up the hand that was attached to Ivan’s. “How the hell are we supposed to take off our shirts?”

“You need to learn to be more resourceful,” Ivan sighed heavily. He carefully took hold of the scarf around his neck and unwound it, folding it with equal care.

“Why are you so comfortable with this?” Alfred asked. This was just weird and awkward. It was one thing to shower with another dude, but handcuffed to another dude? God, was he really already blushing?

“The faster we get on with this, the faster it is over,” Ivan said simply. He looked around for a place to put his scarf and settled with the corner furthest away from the shower head.

“Okay, then, what is your plan with how to do this?” Alfred asked impatiently, still unwilling to strip out of his clothes in front of this stranger.

Ivan sighed, acting like he was dealing with a child, before reaching for the hem of his shirt. He easily pulled it over his head and took out one arm, the one not attached with the shackles. He then slid the shirt down his arm and allowed it to rest on the chain between them. He looked at Alfred, evidently very proud of his accomplishment, but Alfred was a bit…distracted, though he would never admit it out loud.

Ivan was…more muscular than him. Yeah, that was why Alfred was staring, he was pissed that this guy was actually stronger than him. The way his abs were defined, the strong shoulders, the…uh…the sweat that was already making him glisten.

“What?” Alfred asked, hoping Ivan had said something and hoping to make this whole situation less awkward.

“I didn’t say anything.” Ivan smirked at him and Alfred groaned, rolling his eyes.

“Whatever, okay, let’s get this stupid thing done,” Alfred said, forcing himself to look the other way. “You obviously have a plan, so you go first. I’ll keep your shirt safe, don’t worry.”

“You are such a child,” Ivan muttered and, when Alfred glanced back at him, he was already pulling down his boxers.

“Hey, I’m 18,” Alfred snapped. “Legally an adult.” Ivan glanced at him with a raised brow. Alfred made eye contact with him for a solid five seconds before he realized that Ivan was officially pants-less and currently folding his own pants and putting them with his scarf. Alfred’s face got even hotter as he turned back around.

“There is a difference between legally and mentally,” Ivan said simply. Alfred heard him turn a squeaky nob and soon water started running. Alfred turned back to him, mostly to look at how the shower actually runs. Yeah, it was about the shower, _definitely not_ to look at Ivan’s naked body. Ivan had his back to him, which mean that Alfred got a great view of his entire backside, ass included. And holy shit was it an amazing ass… Perfectly round with some extra weight, more than enough to give him a good amount of pudge…

Alfred turned around sharply when he realized he was drooling. Ivan was under the water now and Alfred absently held onto his shirt to make sure it didn’t get too wet. What the hell was Alfred doing? Okay, great, he’d discovered that Ivan had a great body, but he was still a jerk. Alfred still couldn’t stand any part of his personality. Nothing had changed…except for the fact that Alfred now knew what Ivan looked like naked.

Oh, God, how could he continue to look him in the face now that he’d seen that? Alfred flushed.

“I suggest you change quickly,” Ivan mused. “I’m not sure how long their hot water lasts and I would hate to be in here longer than necessary.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure, okay,” Alfred said. He slowly and carefully took off his shirt, putting it in the same place as Ivan’s. He looked down at his own chest, wondering if Ivan would be looking at it the same way Alfred looked at Ivan’s…

Alfred shook his head. Why the fuck was he thinking about that?

With trembling fingers, Alfred was able to get his pants off, folding them into a pile next to Ivan’s clothes. They were about to be naked together… God, why was Alfred acting like a fucking teenager now, of all times? He took a deep breath. He could do this, this was fine.

He slowly and carefully took off his own boxers and folded them next to his pants. Cool, he was naked now, too. He bit his lip before glancing back at Ivan, who was giving him a deadpan look.

Alfred flushed, turning around sharply.

“Don’t make it gay, dude,” he blurted out before he could stop himself.

“I do not believe I am the one making it gay,” Ivan said amusedly, going to stand beside Alfred now. He was enjoying this, the sadistic bastard! “Just wash yourself so we can get this over with as quickly as possible.

“Fine,” Alfred groaned, walked over to the water. It was startlingly warm, a little hotter than Alfred usually preferred, but he wasn’t in the mood to be picky. He noticed a little bar of soap on the ground and carefully picked it up. Ivan had just used this soap…

He shook his head violently, quickly setting to work getting himself clean. Honestly, it felt good to get all of the dirt and grime off of him. He’d spent the night in a forest after falling from the sky, after all. He sighed happily as he watched the water wash off the suds the soap had made. It was a little awkward without proper use of one of his hands, and he was constantly reminded of the fact that Ivan might just be looking at him just like Alfred had been looking at him…

He blushed but soon he was done and he looked at the nobs. It was easy to figure out how to shut off the water and soon, he was standing, cold and dripping wet, in the quiet room with Ivan.

“There’s no towel,” Alfred noted, staring at the floor.

“No, there is not,” Ivan said. “Would you prefer to drip dry or actually put your clothes back on?”

“You get dressed first,” Alfred muttered, keeping his back to the man. Ivan shuffled around, occasionally moving Alfred’s arm for convenience. Before long, Alfred was the only naked man in the room.

“Now that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Ivan asked amusedly as Alfred awkwardly moved over to his pile of clothes to get dressed himself.

“How about you shut the fuck up?” Alfred asked. He finally secured his pants and quickly pulled his shirt back on. It was all wet, but he could live with it. He shook his hands through his hair in hopes to get it to dry faster. When Alfred looked back at Ivan, however, he saw that the man was simply holding his scarf. “What, afraid of getting it wet?”

“Yes,” Ivan said simply. “It was a gift from long ago.”

“I don’t get you,” Alfred huffed, but looked towards the door. The sooner they could be out of this awkward situation, the better. “Let’s just get out of here, okay? If we’re lucky, this will all be over before we have to do this again.”

“I hope so,” Ivan said as Alfred reached for the door.

* * *

Alfred was just making this more and more difficult to deal with as time went on. When he wasn’t complaining about their predicament every two seconds, he was just making it awkward. The stupid shower didn’t have to be that awkward…but after Alfred stared at him, Ivan thought it only fair that he stared at Alfred. He wasn’t half bad to look at, Ivan will admit, but he was still annoying.

And now? He apparently finally came to the realization that they would have to share a bed. Sure, sleeping on the ground next to each other was fine but the second they have to share a bed? God forbid…

“You really do not have to make this so awkward.” Ivan sighed heavily, using his free hand to try to shake out some of the water that was left. The shower didn’t exactly leave him feeling clean, but he wasn’t dirty anymore, so he didn’t have any room to complain. Considering the apparent technology of this place, he was satisfied with what they were given.

“Fine, then, you can sleep on the floor,” Alfred said. Ivan just stared at him blankly before going towards the bed. This had been a long day and he was tired. He didn’t care if Alfred wasn’t as long as his big mouth could stay shut. “What? Don’t look at me like that! There’s no way I’m sharing a bed with you!”

“Don’t be so childish,” Ivan said, pulling Alfred along when necessary. “If _you_ want to sleep on the floor, you may.”

“No fucking way, dude, I slept on the ground last night,” Alfred said.

“And so you expect me to sleep on the ground two nights in a row?” Ivan asked with a smirk. Alfred just glared at him as Ivan happily laid down on the bed. He had to admit, all considered, it was rather comfortable. It might just have feathers in it, that would be interesting.

“Fine, but you better not make it awkward,” Alfred said pointedly, sitting on the bed beside him with a huff. Ivan gave an amused chuckle, shaking his head. Alfred was definitely not the person to demand something like that. It seemed making things awkward was a hobby of his…

Ivan sighed, tapping his finger against his leg. It had been a very long time since his last cigarette. Now, he wouldn’t necessarily call himself addicted, but he could still feel a strong pull to the nicotine. He wanted to make them last…but it felt like he really needed one right now…

“Dude, if you’re fucking nervous just light a cigarette,” Alfred said. “I’d prefer you open a window but I guess that’s not an option. And I’m not about to leave this room with so many people walking around willing to kill us.”

“I am not nervous,” Ivan said simply, though there was an odd feeling in his stomach… Maybe he should use another cigarette. Just one wouldn’t hurt, would it? With a sigh, he pulled out the pack and his lighter. Before long, he had a lit cigarette in his mouth and he let in a deep breath. He was already feeling better.

* * *

They hadn’t been asleep for very long. Hell, Alfred had only barely felt himself slip into sleep before he noticed it. Ivan was shaking. Alfred sat upright, sluggishly turning to look at him. After a long, awkward conversation, Ivan convinced Alfred that they could both use the comforter and be equally comfortable, but Ivan had nearly pushed all of it off in his sleep. Alfred narrowed his eyes, trying to see through his eyesight and the darkness. Something was wrong… Ivan was…muttering in his sleep. Whimpering. He started turning.

“Are you serious?” Alfred groaned. Ivan’s shaking was getting worse. Must have been one hell of a nightmare. Alfred thought for a moment on what to do. Hadn’t he read somewhere that it wasn’t good to wake up someone in the middle of a nightmare? This one looked kind of bad though. Alfred slowly moved a hand towards Ivan’s shoulder, the man having turned his back to him just a moment earlier. Just trying wouldn’t be too bad…

Before Alfred could even touch him, Ivan sat upright, gasping for air. He was trembling a lot worse now, he was probably sweating. You know, if Alfred could see. Alfred slowly moved his hand back to the safety of his side of the bed, staring at Ivan as he tried to calm himself down.

“Uh,” Alfred said before clearing his throat, “you alright there, big guy?” Stupid. That was so stupid for him to ask, what the hell was wrong with him?

Alfred guessed that the way Ivan shook his head meant no, but he couldn’t be sure. He let out a sigh, trying to think of something to do. He almost felt bad for the guy, he was in pretty bad shape. Not to mention, if neither of them got any sleep because of this, they might just be screwed over tomorrow if something bad happened.

Alfred slowly moved his hand to Ivan’s back, lightly touching him at first. Ivan flinched, but slowly relaxed a little bit to his touch. Alfred started rubbing circles into Ivan’s back, hoping that this awkward situation would soon pass over. If they were lucky, they could get back to sleep in a few minutes. After a minute of silence, Alfred could tell that Ivan’s breathing hadn’t calmed down all that much. He tried for a different tactic, something his brother used on him a lot. He started humming.

It was the song always stuck in his head, that would never go away. That apparently Ivan knew, too. So he hummed to the rhythm of his circles, hoping this would do something. If it didn’t work, Alfred had no idea what to do. He couldn’t just sleep while someone was in distress like this. That wasn’t fair, even if the person was Ivan.

“Why are you helping me?” Ivan asked, his voice shaky and uncertain, but still unmistakable.

“Because you’re chained to me?” Alfred asked, breaking up the song. “Because I need you to be on your game tomorrow? Because I’m not an asshole?”

“Could have fooled me,” Ivan said and Alfred could practically hear the guy’s smirk.

“Ha ha,” Alfred said sarcastically, but he didn’t remove his hand. He continued to rub the little circles. Ivan was calming down. “You’re a real asshole, you know that?”

“Yes,” Ivan said simply. Alfred blinked, not expecting that kind of reaction. “You should get your rest.”

“I’m fine, actually,” Alfred said calmly. “I usually go to bed a lot later than this. I’m good until you’re ready to go back to sleep.”

“I…do not think I can,” Ivan admitted.

“You know what I heard?” Alfred asked. “If you flip your pillow over after a nightmare, it won’t come back. Won’t hurt to try at least.”

Ivan sighed. “I’m afraid this nightmare always comes back.”

“Then I guess we’re staying up all night together,” Alfred said. “You’re stuck with me, buddy, whether you like it or not.” Ivan snorted, but said nothing. Alfred continued with the backrub, despite the fact that his hand was going a little numb after rubbing Ivan’s shirt for so long. His fingers continuously brushed against Ivan’s scarf and Alfred mused over how strange it was that the guy didn’t even take off his scarf. But, hey, Ivan was just full of weird. What was one more thing to add onto the list?

After a long stretch of silence, Alfred tried to fill it again with that song, hoping this wasn’t as awkward as he thought it was.

“How…do you know that song?” Ivan asked curiously and Alfred stopped.

“I…dunno,” Alfred said. “It’s just always been stuck in my head. You?”

“Same,” Ivan mused. “Don’t you find that a little strange?”

“Eh, it’s like all the other things I do, I guess,” Alfred said with a shrug. “It comes as naturally as my doodles, so I don’t think a lot about it.”

“Out of curiosity,” Ivan said slowly, “what do you normally doodle?”

“Sunflowers,” Alfred said. “Snowflakes sometimes.” Ivan turned around, making it impossible for Alfred to continue rubbing his back. “What? It’s just some mindless doodling.”

“The same song, the same drawings,” Ivan said. “It cannot be a coincidence.”

“Are you telling me,” Alfred said, “that a big guy like you doodles sunflowers in his spare time?”

“Are you telling me that an obnoxious kid like you, obsessed with being mature, doodles snowflakes in his spare time?” Ivan asked bluntly.

“Touché,” Alfred mused, blushing slightly. “So what do you think it means, then? That we were ‘meant to find each other’ or some bullshit like that?”

“I do not see why I was meant to find you, of all people, but perhaps,” Ivan said. “It still warrants our attention that we have these things in common. Maybe it could help us in the long run.”

“Well, then, big guy,” Alfred said, adjusting his position so that he leaned against the headboard, sitting upright, “since we’re both gonna be up for a while, let’s start a little sharing party, see if there’s anything else that warrants attention. And don’t worry, I won’t bring up any of your friend shit. Just tell me to back off of a subject and I will.”

“Fine,” Ivan said, moving around so that he faced Alfred. “You may ask first.”

“You got any siblings?” Alfred tried. “You know I’ve got a brother.”

“Two sisters,” Ivan said. “One is older, the other is younger. I just hope I do not see them here, it would not be fair to them. You are not in college yet, are you? What do you plan on studying?”

“Engineering,” Alfred said proudly. “Preferably aerospace. I don’t have the patience for all I need to astronaut training so this’ll be the closest I get to touching space. That and my brother absolutely refuses for me to leave the planet. Hell, he doesn’t even want me to leave the state…What did you study in college?”

“Aerospace engineering. A lot of good it did me, seeing as I was not able to chase my foolish dream.”

“Foolish?” Alfred scoffed. “Well, then, what _are_ you doing?”

“I work in a toy shop,” Ivan said. He sounded happy about it, but there was a tinge of something in his voice that told Alfred he would prefer to be doing something else. Maybe engineering?

“You?” Alfred asked with a smirk. “In a toy shop? God, you must scare those kids half to death.”

“The kids are fine with me,” Ivan said happily. “In fact, it is the adults that have the problem. The only exception to this would be you, of course, but I cannot blame a child for poor taste.”

“Watch it, there.” Alfred narrowed his eyes. “You got another question for me?”

“Where are you from?” Ivan asked. “What state are you from?”

“D.C.,” Alfred said. “Not…exactly a state but it kind of counts. You? You’ve gotta be from Russia.”

“I was born in Moscow,” Ivan said proudly. “My sisters and I have moved only a few miles away. It is a beautiful city, much better than D.C., in my opinion.”

“Yeah, well, you’re opinion is shit,” Alfred said pointedly. “Gimme another question, try not to make it stupid.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aw, they’re bonding. How cute! I needed to keep their relationship moving. This chapter was a bit slow, but things will start to speed up soon, I promise. I’ve been trying to work on pacing since my last fic, so here’s hoping! I do need Alfred and Ivan to be in a certain place before I move some things along, though.
> 
> Anyway, that’s it for now! I’ll see you all next time!


	6. Chapter 6

Ivan wasn’t quite sure when he had fallen asleep, but he actually felt fairly well rested when he woke up. The room was still dark, seeing as there were no windows and no one had been in to turn on any of the lights. One thing Ivan did notice, however, was a weight on his shoulder. He smirked slightly as he turned and found that Alfred was, in fact, leaning against him, head resting comfortably on Ivan’s shoulder. It was almost cute…and it was nice to see Alfred when he wasn’t constantly running his mouth. Granted, Ivan couldn’t see much, but it was still nice.

While it lasted.

It was only a matter of minutes before Alfred started to stir, but he didn’t remove his head yet. He probably hadn’t noticed it.

“Did you sleep well, sunflower?” Ivan asked amusedly. Admittedly, Alfred was very fun to tease. But after last night and what he had done for Ivan…he couldn’t bring himself to start any kind of argument. In fact, he didn’t really want to. Alfred’s maturity showed itself in the strangest of times.

“Fuck off,” Alfred grumbled, lightly pushing Ivan away from him. Ivan chuckled, easily steadying himself. “I can’t help that you’re so soft. Maybe you spend a little too much time in that toy shop and not enough working out, huh?” Apparently Alfred had no qualms with starting arguments. Ivan was more than willing to play along.

“Well, I am stronger than you, so it must be a wonder how you push yourself out of bed in the morning,” Ivan said. Alfred was quiet for a moment, his tired brain catching up with what Ivan just said.

“I’ll fucking kick you out of this bed,” was his only comeback, which Ivan laughed at. He couldn’t help himself. Alfred was funny; amusing to mess with, amusing without anyone interfering, most likely even more amusing when no one was looking. “You think it’s funny?” Alfred asked. Ivan soon felt a foot prodding at his side before trying to push him over. Ivan continued laughing, caught off guard enough to actually let Alfred shove him off the bed. He chain pulled Alfred a little along with it. Ivan stared up at the dark ceiling as he continued laughing. When was the last time he’d actually laughed this much? He might just have to thank Alfred for such a good time…

Light spilled into the room and Ivan stifled his laughter, looking up over the bed. Francis stood in the doorway, his head cocked to the side slightly in his confusion.

“It seems Fedya moves so much in his sleep that he managed to kick me off the bed,” Ivan said amusedly, standing up.

“Well, seeing as you two are awake, we can get started with the day,” Francis said happily, leaning on the doorway. “Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum are back, but it doesn’t seem like they got much information out of the Rabbit. Lucky us, the Queen knows even less than we do.”

“You know, you guys still haven't told us a whole lot about this world of yours,” Alfred said. He stood up once Ivan made his way around the bed to stand at his side again.

“I’d be happy to explain it to you over breakfast,” Francis said, nodding into the hallway. “After you, my Alices.” Ivan motioned for Alfred to move first and soon they were out in the hallway. It was much later than Ivan had once assumed, with no traces of the morning in the sky he could see through the window. How long had he slept-in? Normally, he woke up in the morning around the same time. He must have stayed up with Alfred later than he thought.

“Fedya?” Alfred asked him quietly as they walked with Francis towards the dining room.

Ivan snickered. “I think it is cute. Or would you prefer sunflower?”

“Why can’t I have, like, a manly nickname? And if you get to nickname me, then I get to nickname you.”

“I believe you gave me ‘big guy’ the day we met. I find it quite charming, unless you wish to change it again?”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever, big guy,” Alfred said. “Just do me a favor and fuck off.”

“You need to get more creative with your insults,” Ivan suggested. “It seems your words are losing their sting.”

“Oh, just wait, I’ll show you insults,” Alfred said, apparently trying to seem threatening. It was rather cute…

“Do tell me when you can think of something without cursing,” Ivan said.

They reached the dining room, Francis’ smile betraying that he had heard most of their conversation. He found this just as amusing, great. As long as Alfred was annoyed and stayed funny, Ivan didn’t think this could get old. Currently, Alfred was pouting as he walked with Ivan to sit down. Ivan smiled proudly at himself. He was curious about who was cooking, since Francis was with them. Perhaps it was Matthew again… Strangely enough, Kiku also wasn’t with them. Francis seemed to pick up on Ivan’s confusion.

“The Caterpillar and Door Mouse are busy with a project,” Francis provided. “Dee and Dum are back and so they’re the ones cooking for you this morning. Of course, their cooking is not as good as mine…”

“I heard that, dumbass,” someone shouted through the door to the kitchen shortly before someone poked out their head. He had dark brown hair and light brown eyes, though they were a bit darker with the glare he was giving to Francis. His face was etched into a deep frown as he poked into the room. Thankfully, he didn’t have any odd decorations on his head. Francis hummed at him in response with a happy smile on his face. The man disappeared again into the kitchen.

“Do you know him?” Ivan asked Alfred curiously.

Alfred sighed, leaning back in his chair, looking at the kitchen. “That was Lovino and my guess is that, if there’s two of them, the other one should be Feliciano…”

“It always amazes me how you simply know everyone’s actual names,” Francis mused. “How _do_ you do that?”

Alfred shrugged. “I just know, I guess.” It seemed Kiku was the only one outside of the two of them that knew about Alfred knowing everyone from the real world. Ivan also knew people, but he was extremely nervous to see who he would know. They would most likely all be centered around the Queen, which made him extremely nervous.

There was no doubt Natalia and Katyusha would be involved, since Alfred’s own brother was involved. Luckily, it didn’t seem like parents were involved in this world. But Ivan already knew one person in here and, if Feliks was only the tip of the iceberg, he would have to be faced with a lot of his own failures. He just hoped Alfred wouldn’t try to pry again.

They sat in an awkward silence for a short while after that. Before long, Lovino and Feliciano came out. Feliciano looked fairly similar to Lovino, though with just lighter colored hair and a bright smile instead of a permanent frown. They could easily been twins, so their similar titles made sense.

“Oh, wow, this is my first time meeting the Alices,” Feliciano said happily as he set down two dishes with plenty of food. Again, Ivan didn’t recognize the dishes, but he didn’t expect anything else. The food from the last night had been delicious, so Ivan didn’t mind. He took a lot of confidence into the fact that they didn’t want to kill either of them yet. Who knew what either of them would do once they figured out which Alice was which.

“Hey,” Alfred said. “So, which Tweedle are you?”

“I’m Tweedle Dee!” Feliciano chimed. Ivan noticed Lovino showed clear distaste with their title. Most likely because his name was Tweedle Dum…Then again, neither of those titles were very good. Worse than Alice, even. Where did they come up with these titles, anyway? “It’s so cool that you guys are finally here! From what I’ve heard, we’ve been waiting for our Alice for decades, since before we were even born!”

“Really?” Ivan asked curiously. The twins sat down, obviously waiting for Ivan and Alfred to get their own food first. Alfred didn’t even hesitate, taking more than what Ivan thought was humanly possible. He had surprised Ivan last night by eating more than what any normal human could eat. Maybe Alfred really wasn’t from the real world after all…

“Oh, yeah,” Feliciano nodded happily. Once he started taking food for himself, Ivan noticed that he had a surprising amount, considering his small stature. “That prophecy was brought by the Cats, what, fifty years ago?”

“About,” Francis mused. “The Hatter certainly looks forward to finally proving the worth of his title.”

“What do you mean?” Ivan asked curiously while Alfred was distracted by his food. It seemed Alfred’s curiosity for this world was quickly dwindling, just accepting what was thrown at him. Ivan was eager to learn more about this place while he was going to be stuck in it. In any case, Ivan really loved the idea of a world where magic did exist, even if it wasn’t in mass quantities.

“Anyone outside of his circle thinks he’s fucking useless,” Lovino grumbled. “The Hatter hasn’t exactly been popular, especially once the Queen took over before even your prophecy came up.”

“If Alices haven’t been around in such a long time, why do you guys still have so much faith in us?” Alfred asked, finally interested in what was going on.

“There have only been a handful of Alices in our recorded history,” Francis said. “Every single time one has come to our world, they’ve changed absolutely everything. This is the first time there’s ever been two. Each one does come with their own personal prophecy, though we are never sure how long the Alice will appear after the prophecy.”

“Who does give you these prophecies?” Ivan asked curiously. It didn’t seem like they had a deity or anything like that to give them information like that.”

“The Cat, of course,” Feliciano chimed. “Well, you wouldn’t know that, would you? The Cat usually acts as a neutral party. No one knows how they get the stuff they do. Must be something to do with the forest, though. They’re the only ones to be able to come in and out without the path. This is also the first time there’s been two of them as well…”

“So you want to use the Hatter’s Alice to bring back the glory to his name,” Ivan offered. “And hopefully get rid of the Queen’s Alice to knock down their name…”

“Exactly,” Francis said. “We’re very glad you’re being so cooperative.”

“Well,” Alfred said as he swallowed a large mouthful of food, “if you give us good enough reason, you could easily get both of us to go along with your plan. So far, we’re just here because we don’t quite understand this world.”

Francis smiled. “I have more faith in the prophecy than your words. But thank you for the offer. I’ll save our plans for the Hatter’s Alice. Just in case.”

Ivan had to admit, he was fairly good at planning and making sure everything was in order for the Hatter’s victory. From the way everything was placed, it seemed like he was Arthur’s right hand man. Ivan wanted to know more about the people of this world and the reasoning behind their titles and relationships, but Kiku might be the better person to ask that about. For now, Ivan had to bide his time and make sure that they couldn’t figure out which Alice was which. If they were lucky, both Ivan and Alfred could make it out of this alive.

* * *

“So, any brilliant ideas stewing in that head of yours?” Alfred asked curiously. He was laying across the couch as best he could, his legs draped over one side of it since Ivan’s fat ass was taking up the rest of the couch. They were in that sitting room from before, but Kiku wasn’t there, apparently busy working on a project with Matthew, or whatever. Alfred just hoped that he acted like less of a wuss around someone he was comfortable with. Considering the two were on a first name basis, they were probably comfortable with each other…

“Anything intelligent in your head?” Ivan hummed. Alfred didn’t hesitate to punch him right in the stomach. Ivan laughed. “You’ve been quiet for so long, I actually thought you were thinking.”

“I think all the time,” Alfred whined. “I just figured that since, you know, this is one of the rare times they leave us alone and it’s not fucking awkward, we could actually try to figure something out. But, if you’re gonna be an asshole…”

“I think it might be a good idea for us to see the Queen,” Ivan said, something that Alfred certainly didn’t expect to come from his mouth. Especially considering how he reacted to seeing the Rabbit…

“Yeah?” Alfred asked, sitting up slowly to turn towards Ivan. “You sure about that?”

Ivan sighed heavily. “I’ll be seeing them eventually. I would prefer for it to be under my own terms. Regardless, I do not even know what the Hatter wants to accomplish and I’m not sure who I can trust. I would at least like to see our options.”

“We could always try going for the Cats,” Alfred offered. Granted, he wasn’t exactly excited to start wondering forever in a forest, especially if they were so important.

“I’ve considered it,” Ivan mused. “They want us to choose a side. I’m not even sure what would happen if we went with a neutral party.”

“We don’t even know for sure about their abilities, either,” Alfred said. “We know Arthur can move things, so telekinesis, I guess. From what he told us, if we can trust him, the Queen can kill people, but only with words. And the Cats can…make you forget reality? I wish he was a little less vague about that. But it has to be equal in power to what he’s got, right?”

“Regardless, I do not think we need to be very careful,” Ivan said. “No one wants either of us to die until they figure out which Alice is which. And they cannot really know for sure with the way the prophecy was worded… We could try to trick them as well, but that would be a risk.”

“Glad to see you still don’t wanna kill me,” Alfred said with a happy smile. They had bonded at least a little bit after being chained to each other for a few days. And seeing each other naked. And sleeping together. They had apparently both decided to ignore what had happened last night. It made Alfred wonder, however, if Ivan had the same nightmare the first night they’d spent together. From the way Ivan acted, these nightmares were a regular occurrence. Maybe he just didn’t sleep in the forest…

“That does not mean I particularly like you,” Ivan said pointedly. Alfred rolled his eyes, going back to his previous position. “Do not pout, Fedya. I’m sure you are used to it.”

“Don’t you worry, big guy,” Alfred said. “I’ll find a nickname that pisses you off soon.”

Ivan laughed and Alfred nearly flinched. Ivan seriously had no idea how fucking cute he looked when he was laughing and Alfred was getting the full brunt of it today. Ivan’s nose would scrunch up every time he laughed and he would lean back, showing just a little bit of his neck. Alfred nearly damned himself for getting so distracted by the rest of Ivan’s body when they showered because he forgot to look at Ivan’s neck. From what Alfred could tell, there were some traces of scars there, but he couldn’t see much of it.

One other problem Alfred found with Ivan’s laugh, when he was full-on laughing not just faking it or being sarcastic, was that it sounded absolutely fucking amazing. He could be fucking cliché and say it sounded like wind chimes on a summer’s day or a fucking angel or something, but Alfred honestly couldn’t find a way to describe it. All he knew was the combination of that stupid nose scrunch and the way Ivan sounded when he was genuinely having fun made butterflies flutter up a fucking storm in Alfred’s stomach.

“Good luck with that, darling,” Ivan said teasingly. Alfred did flinch this time, sitting upright to hide his fiery red face. What. The fuck. Was that?

“D-Dude,” Alfred said, flinching as his voice cracked. He cleared his throat, making sure it came out low and manly. “Who the fuck calls another one of their friends darling?” Ivan laughed again and Alfred honestly wasn’t sure if he could take it. Sure, Ivan was an asshole, but he was a damn good looking asshole. With a bit of a soft spot, which was always good in Alfred’s book. But God, he wasn’t fucking _attracted_ to him, was he?

“Relax,” Ivan said happily, mussing up Alfred’s hair, which made his poor victim flinch once again. “I am just messing with you. You make it too easy.”

“Fuck off,” Alfred said, swatting his hand away. “We were planning shit, in case you forgot with all your fucking messing with me?”

Ivan sighed. “I am not sure what to do. The Queen could easily be more violent than the Hatter. Considering how different your friends are acting, the people I know could always be extremely different from what I knew. Whatever we decide to do, we need to know the risk.”

“Well, we do know one thing,” Alfred said, turning around once he knew his blush had calmed down. “If Arthur’s magic won’t work on us, I don’t think the Queen’s will work on us, either. The Cat is up in the air, but we can at least rely on that knowledge. She can’t kill us with words like she can anyone else.”

“I hope you are right,” Ivan said.

Suddenly, Alfred heard a deep, loud _boom_ behind them, the ground shaking slightly. Alfred caught Ivan’s eye before looking at the direction it came from. There was some black smoke coming from one of the doors, where Matthew had come from when they first met. That was probably where he was working on that “project” of his. They both stood up, carefully moving towards it.

It wasn’t like they had been explicitly told not to explore anywhere, Alfred had just figured that it was an unnecessary risk. Especially since they still hadn’t seen Arthur’s army. Ivan made up for Alfred’s apprehension, pulling him along roughly through the hallways, following where the smoke got thicker and thicker.

Before long, they made it to a doorway where Matthew and Kiku stood outside of a room, covered in soot and coughing.

“Fuck something up?” Alfred asked with a slight laugh. This was better than where his awkward conversation with Ivan was going.

“No, this is how it’s supposed to work,” Matthew admitted with a small smile. He was proud, so that was good. Better than consistently shy… “That was amazing!”

“If you say so,” Kiku said shakily, leaning heavily against the wall. “The Hatter will not be happy with that mess.”

“I’ll be fine,” Matthew admitted sheepishly. He swatted at the smoke in the doorway, apparently impatient to get back inside. “I wanna see if everything looks like it should.”

“At least wait a little, bro.” Alfred laughed. “You’re not gonna die if you wait a few minutes.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Matthew nodded, trying in vain to put his smile away. “You’re right.”

“What are you even making in there?” Ivan asked curiously.

“A bomb,” Matthew said proudly and Alfred blinked. For someone who acted so shy normally, this guy was intense. “A…a smoke bomb, I guess. I’ve been working for years on different types of bombs for when we finally storm the castle. A couple of other people with different titles have been making things over the years and I wanted to put in my own part. A-And hearing that our Alices finally came really made me want to finish.”

“This was the last one, right?” Kiku asked. Matthew nodded happily, apparently coming down from his high of success and growing a bit more aware of his shyness from before.

“How many you got?” Alfred asked curiously. Maybe this was the right side…

“There’s a um,” Matthew thought for a second. “A smoke bomb, a poison gas bomb, one that just plain explodes at a pretty good radius, a stink bomb, and a flash bomb.”

“Wow,” Alfred nodded. He didn’t know the technology from this place, but if it took Matthew a few years to _invent_ all of these bombs, then maybe there was something to think about. Exactly how far behind was this place? “That’s pretty impressive, dude.”

“Thanks.” Matthew breathed out a sigh of relief. He looked back into the room and apparently the smoke had cleared enough for him to go back inside, albeit coughing. Alfred couldn’t help but laugh a little; the guy was dedicated, he’d have to admit.

“I’ll admit, this project has been kind of fun,” Kiku said happily, looking back into the room but not going in quite yet. “Though this isn’t his only project right now…”

“Keeps himself busy?” Alfred asked.

“You have no idea.” Kiku shook his head.

The smoke had mostly cleared by now, with the help of some waving hands. Alfred’s curiosity got the better of him and he wound up dragging Ivan with him into this mysterious room. It was one hell of a workshop, he had to admit. It was a massive room, not to mention the huge windows on the other side, all of them open to help filter the air. It looked like this place could have been a ballroom before, but now it was covered in oil and soot with tables scattered everywhere; along all four walls and scattered in the center with just enough room to walk. There was a mess of a pulley system scattered on the ceiling as well as some well-placed pipes, some of which came down to the tables into containers. There was a mess of supplies everywhere, including the ground, especially after that last explosion. Matthew was flittering around between the tables, picking up scattered supplies like scrap metal and working at the speed of light, apparently to get more of his grenades together.

“This is awesome,” Alfred said, taking all of it in. There was so much, he could probably stand in that one spot for hours and not spot everything. There were tools of all kinds and sizes and any supplies that could possibly be necessary. It really was astounding to see. Alfred had to wonder if the Matthew he knew wanted to do stuff like this, too. Sure, he was kind of interested in engineering like Alfred, but something like this…

“It really is very cool,” Ivan mused beside him. Alfred looked at him and found an honest surprised expression on his face. It was…pleasant. Of course, Alfred’s vision was still blurry, but what he saw was pretty nice.

“You know, you’re not that bad looking when you aren’t being a jerk,” Alfred said with a smirk as Kiku went to assist Matthew.

“I believe you already made that point yesterday,” Ivan supplied happily. Alfred blushed, turning away with a scoff. Fine, last time he complimented that jerk…

“If you two would like something to do,” Kiku offered to them from across the room, “I could try and find Tweedle Dee and Dum and see if they have something for you to do.”

Alfred and Ivan shared a look. Honestly, Alfred wanted to see what he could get away with by exploring around this place. It wasn’t exactly like they could get hurt if they went somewhere they weren’t supposed to… Maybe Ivan didn’t want to explore, but, hey, that wasn’t Alfred’s problem, now was it?

“Nah, I think we’re okay,” Alfred blurted out before Ivan could say anything. Ivan didn’t react much, just a slight eye roll. Kiku seemed confused, but nodded anyway, leaving the two to their own devices as he continued to help out Matthew. “C’mon, big guy, we’re gonna go exploring.”

“Don’t you think that is a little dangerous?” Ivan asked curiously, but still followed Alfred out of the room.

“Depends on if we get caught,” Alfred said happily. “Besides, if they really cared about us not exploring, they would keep a bit closer of an eye on us, don’t you think?”

Ivan conceded with a nod as Alfred looked around them curiously. There were so many doors and even some stairs at the end of the hallway. Where would he start?

* * *

Alfred really had a knack for finding pretty interesting places. At first, all he was finding were a bunch of storage rooms and a barren study. Once they’d gone up the stairs, however, they had found plenty of interesting places. Some bedrooms, which were always interesting to see, a massive library that looked very heavily used despite the lack of anyone in there. Ivan had forced Alfred to stay in there for quite a while as he tried to discover what kind of literature they had. Of course, he didn’t recognize any of the authors or titles, but it looked like they had the same genres as Ivan was used to. He would be extremely interested in reading some of them sometime. If they stayed long enough for that.

Finally, Alfred had found something that really did interest Ivan quite a lot. It was a little balcony. It hung over the side of the mansion, allowing them to see the little down they’d been rushed through before. It also gave them a clear view of the forest spread out in front of them. The sun was beginning to set and it gave quite a beautiful glow to everything around them. Ivan could see for a fair distance, considering they were only on the second floor. Some of the trees in the forest were pretty tall and it was through watching those that he was able to see…movement. The forest was actually moving and it was quite mesmerizing.

“You know,” Alfred said with a sigh, “there are times when I think that this place seems pretty normal, but them it throws shit like this at me. I have to admit that this place is pretty damn cool, though.”

Ivan smiled, resting his hands on the railing in front of him. It didn’t look extremely sturdy so he didn’t rest a lot of his weight on it. Then again, a lot of things in this place didn’t seem very strong, but here he was with shackles around his wrist. Ivan glanced at Alfred out of the corner of his eye and couldn’t help but smile a little wider. Alfred had this childish wonder about him and was always extremely expressive. Even though he couldn’t see very clearly, he could apparently see a lot of things Ivan couldn’t that made him so consistently excited. And not to mention the angle of the sun made that stupid natural tan of his practically glow.

He had to admit, if Alfred actually knew when to shut his mouth, Ivan might actually consider him kind of attractive. One thing that did help a little bit was that adorable, obvious crush Alfred was developing on him. Ivan was starting to get used to the way Alfred talked, as well. In fact, he was beginning to enjoy his constant cursing and less-than-creative insults.

Watching as it grew darker and darker, Ivan began to wonder just how long they would be stuck here. Who knew how much time had passed in the real world? It was a few days here. What if his sisters were worried about him? What about his job? He couldn’t call in sick from here. Hopefully he wasn’t fired…

Thinking about his sisters made his heart ache a little bit. He missed them. And he was almost afraid of what would happen to them in this world, but he hoped nothing bad happened to them.

“Thinking about home?” Alfred asked with a small smile. Ivan raised a brow at him. “What? You were just looking all fucking mopey. And I get that, man. I miss my actual brother, you know? And my friends.”

“How much time do you think has passed?” Ivan asked curiously.

“Who knows,” Alfred said. “Part of me is still thinking that this is just some really weird dream and I’ll wake up back in my bed or something. I kind of miss the most stressful part of my life being writing a paper overnight. Now I have to worry about being killed?”

“Do not worry, I will make sure to protect you, sweetheart,” Ivan said with a little smirk. Alfred punched him roughly in the shoulder and Ivan actually flinched. He really knew how to hit, damn. Ivan laughed and Alfred snorted, rolling his eyes.

“Jackass,” Alfred muttered. “Your pet names aren’t that cute.”

“Then why are you blushing?” Ivan teased. Alfred’s blush only grew brighter and Ivan laughed even more. “Do not worry, Fedya, I am only teasing because you make it so fun. If you stopped reacting I might just stop.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Alfred said. “I’ll find some way to get payback on ya. Just you fucking wait.”

“I will try to contain my excitement,” Ivan said happily. That was when he noticed something going on near the forest. A group of people were running out of it and he froze up slightly when he recognized some of them. Feliks was there…Eduard, Ravis…Toris… They had fire in their hands and Feliks had already set fire to a house in front of them.

“What the hell?” Alfred asked, already bracing to run after them. Ivan was still frozen where he stood, staring at the people he had known before. The people who he knew would never forgive him. Waves of guilt and anxiety washed over him as he watched them. He’d sworn he would never see them again to make sure they didn’t have to face what he had done. Seeing them also flooded Ivan with memories he’d been trying to forget for years.

“Hey!” Alfred snapped, lightly shoving Ivan’s arm. Ivan shook his head, looking back at Alfred. “You okay there?”

Ivan took a deep breath, nearly glancing back at the chaos around them. The sky was getting darker but the town was only getting brighter. He was starting to hear shouts and screams around them.

“No,” Ivan said under his breath. Alfred shifted between his feet. He was obviously torn. He probably wanted to help these people, but Ivan absolutely refused to go down there and face his mistakes. He couldn’t do it without freezing up and getting himself hurt.

Ivan flinched when he heard a little explosion and he saw a whole lot of smoke. Matthew was down there now.

“Look, I’m not really sure what happened with these guys,” Alfred said, shifting even more impatiently, “but there are people down there that could use some help. I can’t just sit here…”

“I can’t go down there.” Ivan shook his head. Alfred groaned, running an impatient hand through his hair.

“You’re gonna have to face them eventually,” Alfred said with an exasperated sigh. “Ivan, come on. I can’t sit here.” The shouts and screams were getting louder and Ivan flinched, closing his eyes tightly. It hurt him a lot, knowing that people were getting hurt. But he knew he couldn’t help them, especially not if he looked at any of his former friends in the eyes. “Ivan! Please!”

“I’m sorry,” Ivan muttered. He peeked open one eye, seeing Alfred glaring at him. Ivan couldn’t face his mistakes again. He didn’t have anyone to help him through it if he were to fall into the place he had been in the first time he’d faced this problem. His sisters could barely help him through and, sure, Alfred could help with a nightmare, but this was something else entirely.

God, Ivan needed another cigarette…

Alfred started pulling on the shackles again, trying to use his strength to yank Ivan with him. Ivan pulled right back, his anxiety spiking at the thought of being forced down there.

“I cannot go down there, Alfred,” Ivan said slowly, trying to keep his breathing even. “And you will not make me.”

“For the love of…” Alfred let out an exasperated sigh, giving up on pulling. “You’re even more of an asshole than I thought you were.”

“You have no idea,” Ivan muttered. Alfred let out a long breath through his nose, closing his eyes tightly and covering his ears in hopes of blocking out the chaos around them. Ivan just hoped that Arthur’s army could handle something like this. He inwardly cursed himself. Just four people and he was rendered useless…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like almost nothing happened in this chapter, so that’s why I had to end it like that. We got a lot of stuff between Ivan and Alfred, so that’s going along nicely. And some more stuff on the world. More action will be happening next time, so do not worry. I’m also going to be doing a lot of world building coming soon, something we’ve been missing out a lot on with the two of them stuck in that mansion this whole time.
> 
> Anyway, I’ll see you next time!


	7. Chapter 7

If Ivan thought Alfred was annoying under normal circumstances, Alfred when he was pissed off was on another level. It took quite some time, but Ivan had managed to use a combination of convincing and pulling to get Alfred into the safety of that stupid bedroom. It was enclosed, there were no windows, but at least they would be safe while Ivan forced them to sit around and do nothing. No one wanted to kill the Alices, meaning the mansion they were staying in should be safe. Ivan felt completely useless, but at least they wouldn’t have to watch anymore.

“You’re a coward,” Alfred said disdainfully as Ivan closed the door to the room.

“I am,” Ivan admitted, staring at the door. Maybe he could have that cigarette now. Alfred would just have to deal with the smoke, Ivan’s hands were shaking and he needed…something.

Just as he pulled out the box of cigarettes, however, they were swiped out of his hand. He glared up at Alfred, who glared back just as harshly.

“Give it back, Fedya,” Ivan said slowly.

“No,” Alfred said, holding it back and away from Ivan.

“Being childish is not going to help anything.”

“I don’t care,” Alfred said pointedly. “You’re not getting these back.”

“What do you want me to do?” Ivan asked impatiently. “I already told you that I cannot go out there. Stop being immature.”

“Hey, I’m not the one trying to run away from a fight,” Alfred said. “I’m not the one who can stand around while people get killed!”

“We do not even know if this place is even real or not,” Ivan said.

“There’s a small chance that it is real!” Alfred protested. Damn him and his childish sense of justice. “And I don’t care how small it is! I want to help these people! I don’t care if I get hurt!”

“I can’t go out there,” Ivan said slowly. “You need to get that through your thick skull.” Ivan was starting to get impatient. He tried to step forward and reach around Alfred to get to the box, but Alfred stepped back expertly to avoid him.

“Smoking’s bad for you, anyway,” Alfred muttered, glaring harshly at him still. Ivan felt his hands twitch. He was getting impatient and his anxiety was only making things worse. He tried to advance again, but Alfred stepped back again. He was nearly at the bed now.

“If you want to act like a child, I will treat you like one,” Ivan said. “I will count to ten.”

“Do you really think you scare me?” Alfred scoffed. He used both hands to push harshly on Ivan’s chest, making him stumble backwards a few feet. The box was still out of his reach. While Ivan was stronger, Alfred did have a fair amount of strength on his own. And he was small and quick. “You’re just a big coward that likes to use intimidation tactics.”

“Because last time I went past intimidation I hurt people I didn’t want to,” Ivan said pointedly, shoving Alfred right back. Alfred stumbled a great deal more than Ivan did, but he didn’t stand down. “Do not add yourself to the list because you are careless.”

“What’s the fucking difference?” Alfred rolled his eyes. “I get hurt out there trying to help people or I get hurt in here trying to get to the people I can help. Or we can both stay in this stupid room and burn to death. If that works out better for you. I don’t know about you, but I’m really not in the mood to die for these people’s stupid causes!” Alfred apparently tried to take another chance and push Ivan again. Ivan’s patience was slowly ticking away with every second. He glanced at the box of cigarettes. Was that really what this part of the fight had started about? Ivan really was irritable. He just wanted to end this now, get it over with.

Ivan noticed Alfred look at the door before making the stupid decision to try to go for it. Ivan simply shoved him away, back towards the bed and Alfred reeled back, nearly pulling Ivan along with him.

“If you do not stop, I will be forced to be more violent with you,” Ivan warned. “I am not going outside. I cannot face them again. You can call me a coward all you like, but I will not budge.”

“All you are is weak,” Alfred stated. “No matter how you put it. You hurt people, get over yourself. We all have. And taking on their pain for them is just plain disrespectful.”

“Do not trivialize what I have done,” Ivan growled. He just noticed his hands had balled into shaking fists again. He felt an unbelievable need to hit something and he hoped that Alfred wouldn’t be stupid enough to make it him. But damn…as much as hitting that stupid bed made him calm down, the idea of hitting flesh was much, much sweeter and more redeeming. Seeing the damage that he could cause…

Ivan shook his head.

“Take you’re fucking cigarettes,” Alfred said with a stupidly happy grin. He threw the box onto the ground and stamped on it with his foot. Ivan growled, raising a fist. It was mostly for intimidation, but a large part of him really wanted to land a hit. Alfred didn’t back down and Ivan would pay anything to hit that pretty, smug face of his.

The door slammed open behind them and someone shouted something, taking Ivan off guard. The surprise caused him to lurch forward and he landed a _hard_ hit on Alfred’s face. Ivan felt the unmistakable feeling of Alfred’s nose breaking beneath his knuckles as his stomach plummeted. Before Ivan could even recoil and even start his apology, Alfred collapsed backwards, part of him hitting the bed as he fell.

“Alfred!” Ivan immediately moved forward to keep him from falling to the floor, looking over him in a panic. All the feelings of tension he had felt before vanished as he took in the damage. Alfred’s nose was bleeding and there was a solid bruise just underneath Alfred’s eye that was starting to bloom. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Alfred…”

“I don’t mean to interrupt the mood,” Francis said behind them, his breath coming out in pants and his voice tired. Ivan didn’t even glance back at him as he tried to look over Alfred some more. His nose was definitely broken and that was entirely his fault. He hadn’t meant to get so angry…damn… “We need to get you two to safety. Now. There’s no doubt they know you two are in the mansion.”

“I thought you said it was safe in here,” Ivan said simply.

“In all fairness,” Arthur’s voice said behind them, “I expected the Queen actually cared about your wellbeing. I did not expect a fire this large.”

“And that army of yours?” Ivan asked, already beginning to carefully maneuver Alfred’s unconscious body onto his back. That would make moving around a lot easier. And he could get away as quickly as possible. It seemed that Arthur and Francis wanted to keep them around, but panic was now starting to flood Ivan’s senses and he just felt like running away. And keeping Alfred safe in his current condition, which was all Ivan’s fault.

“My army is exactly the reason why we have the time to get you out and to safety,” Arthur said impatiently. “We need to get moving. Now.”

Ivan turned around once Alfred was secure on his back, his head limp on Ivan’s shoulder. Ivan nodded to the two at the door. They could at least provide some protection while Ivan figured out where to go. Arthur moved first, Francis following closely behind. Ivan almost expected chaos as they left the room, but it was as calm as ever. It was making him extremely antsy.

“Can I at least have a weapon?” Ivan asked. His hands were shaking terribly. He glanced at Alfred, the blood making him shiver. What was Alfred even going to say when he woke up? If he was smart, he wouldn’t forgive Ivan for what he did…If they weren’t chained together, he’d probably never want to see Ivan again, if he could help it.

Francis hesitated for a moment before he pulled out an object from his pants. It was a revolver. Ivan was almost surprised, but gratefully took it. Checking it over, he found that it had about five bullets left in it. Well, it looked like these people trusted him a little too much.

Arthur opened the main doors quickly, walking with a purpose and authority. He looked like he considered himself invincible. Ivan tensed once they were outside. There was a clear panic with the fire, civilians running around, some heading straight for the forest, as many funneling into the path as possible. That looked like a way out…In the forest that moved that everyone was afraid to enter. They could get lost easily, with no one to follow, not even the lackeys of the Queen…They were Alices, after all, the rules of this world apparently didn’t apply to them. Ivan tensed, ready to move, but there wasn’t a very clear path through the fire and he refused to let Alfred get anymore hurt than he already was.

Francis and Arthur apparently already had a plan in mind that they weren’t keen on shouting for everyone to hear. Ivan followed them through the mess for the time being. Part of him hoped that Alfred wouldn’t wake up to all of the sounds. Now was not the time for them to continue their stupid argument.

As they walked through the small paths without flames, worming through soldiers trying to save people and apparently find the arsonists, Ivan noticed that they were going the opposite direction of the forest. Ivan would have to act fast if he was going to go through with his plan. Everything going on around him really was working him into a panic. He felt like he just needed quiet again, to sort through his thoughts and emotions. And Alfred needed a better place to recover…

Someone ran in front of them and it took Ivan’s panicked mind a few seconds to sort out who, exactly, it was. Toris… Ivan froze, his thoughts immediately shutting down and turning into a blind panic.

“I can’t let you go anywhere,” Toris said, shouting above all of the noise. Arthur didn’t even hesitate to use his magic on him, shoving his hand forward and, as a result, flinging Toris back, into a weak, burning building. Ivan fought the urge to move forward and help him. He hadn’t even noticed that Arthur and Francis were moving until he was shouted at. He looked at Alfred once again, trying to sort through his thoughts, but most of it was coming out as a panicked mess.

Two thoughts came to mind; get out of here and get Alfred to safety.

He started running. In the opposite direction of Francis and Arthur. They were out of sight in a matter of seconds and he stared running through the maze of streets, trying to avoid the fire and the people. Soldiers didn’t pay them any mind, maybe taking them as other injured civilians. Ivan only thought to make it to the forest, where things would hopefully calm down. He pushed past a few people on the way, but he tried to make sure not to jostle Alfred too much.

Finally, he could see the forest clearly in front of him, with no one and nothing around to block it. Just a straight shot into the trees.

“Stop!”

Ivan stopped dead in his tracks at the sound of Feliks’ voice. He didn’t dare turn around, staring at the forest, just a few meters from where he stood.

“Stay right there. I don’t really wanna hurt you if I don’t gotta.”

Alfred groaned, shifting slightly on Ivan’s back. That noise alone was more than enough to snap Ivan back into focus, at least long enough for him to realize what he had to do. He ran once again, this time able to worm his way through the small gaps of the trees.

Almost immediately, the sound around him disappeared and the heat of the fire faded into cool air around them. He looked back, but all he saw was the forest around him, dark and cool and perfectly silent. He swallowed thickly as he shook his head, trying to calm himself down. He blinked when he realized that he had left his cigarettes back in the mansion, his lighter useless in his pocket. He looked at the revolver, weighing it in his hand. He let out a long breath. Now all he had to do was find his way out of his forest…

“You really are stupid, aren’t you?” a voice asked in the darkness around them and Ivan stood with the revolver ready to fire, but he couldn’t see anyone. Was this…one of the Cats? “Do yourself a favor. Don’t do anything else stupid or you’ll get yourself killed.”

Something pushed onto Alfred’s back, pushing Ivan forward with him. Ivan stumbled forwards, blinking. When he opened his eyes, he found himself standing on that trail in the middle of the forest, darkness surrounding them and alerting Ivan to the fact that it was nighttime now. The middle of the night. Something clanked on the ground beside him and he looked over to see a pile of logs and sticks by his feet. A gift from the Cats, he supposed.

With a heavy sigh, Ivan slowly set Alfred down on the ground, resting his back against the trunk of a tree. Alfred didn’t look like he was stirring as Ivan looked him over in the dull light. Ivan set to work with his sleeve, wiping away the blood that had collected around Alfred’s mouth. It was still bleeding a little and Ivan sighed, tilting Alfred’s head down just in case. If the bleeding didn’t stop by the time Ivan could set up a fire, then he could start to worry.

This was actually helping him sort through his thoughts. He put together a collection of sticks fairly close to Alfred but not too close. Thankfully, he did have his lighter with him so he set to work lighting the sticks. There were a few leaves that looked fairly dry as well. These Cats knew what they were doing, evidently. It didn’t take long before Ivan had a fire going over two of the logs. He decided to save as much as he could. He highly doubted he’d be actually going to sleep that night. Especially since he doubted Alfred was going to help him when he had a nightmare.

Alfred groaned again as Ivan knelt down beside him. Now that he had light, he could properly assess Alfred’s face. The bruising around his nose and eyes had gotten a lot worse, but his nose didn’t look crooked, so that was good. He wiped away the little blood that had come out and sighed with relief when no more came out. Alfred was starting to worm around, no doubt uncomfortable and in pain. Ivan decided to distance himself as best he could, sitting by a nearby tree and watching the fire as Alfred slowly woke up.

“God, you really are an asshole,” Alfred grumbled, shaking his head slightly. He flinched as he moved. “Fuck, how hard did you hit me?” He moved to touch his face and Ivan immediately moved to stop him.

“I wouldn’t touch it if I were you,” Ivan warned and Alfred just stared at him.

“You broke my nose.” It wasn’t a question. Ivan flinched back, moving his hands as close to himself as possible. “You broke my fucking nose, you…you…asshole!”

“I am sorry,” Ivan admitted. “It was a stupid argument, I got myself worked up. I should not have hit you. I also should not have let my own cowardice take over me. You…do not have to forgive me, but I am very, very sorry.”

Alfred looked at him in shock for a few seconds, nodding slowly.

“I’m sorry for escalating it,” Alfred muttered. “I shouldn’t have antagonized you like that.”

“It is fine,” Ivan said, looking at the fire now.

“Those guys aren’t gonna go away,” Alfred said carefully. He wasn’t trying to start another fight, thank God. “You’re going to need to build up the courage to face them eventually.”

“You do not know what I have done,” Ivan said simply, pulling his legs close to his chest. “Why I cannot look at their faces again.”

“If it’s enough to make you break my nose, I’ve got a vague idea,” Alfred said. He let out a sigh. “Where are we? How did we get here? Where are Arthur and the others?”

Ivan stared into the fire for a while before answering. He wasn’t exactly sure how Alfred was going to react to his decision. “We are in the forest. I…ran away in the middle of that fire. Most of the civilians had made it to safety, from what I could tell. I did not run into the forest on the path, however. The Cats only said a few sentences to me before shoving us here. I do not know what time or day it is, but at least we have a fire.”

“Someone’s gonna be waiting for us once we make it out of here,” Alfred said. “I’ll be anything that the Hatter will be on one side and the Queen on the other. Do you know _where_ we are in the forest?”

“I have no idea,” Ivan admitted. He’d been more focused on Alfred’s safety than anything else. Now that he was awake, Ivan found himself calming down a lot quicker than he thought he would. He had someone to talk to and Alfred was smart enough to realize that now was not the time to start any kind of argument.

“Well…who would you prefer we wind up with?” Alfred asked.

“Honestly?” Ivan thought for a moment. “Neither appeals to me very much.”

“Well, we’re both gonna be stuck with one of them,” Alfred said. “God, my nose hurts like a bitch!”

“Sorry.”

“I’m just glad we’re mostly on each other’s side,” Alfred huffed. “Means you’re hopefully gonna be punching the other guys more than me.”

“Hopefully,” Ivan echoed with a small smile. Alfred laughed slightly. Ivan looked down at the revolver in his hands. “Francis gave me a gun. I have five bullets, but I am not sure what to do with it.”

“So, to take inventory,” Alfred mused. “We’ve got a gun, a lighter, and some cigarettes?”

“No,” Ivan said, moving forward to put another log onto the fire before it grew too small. “I left the cigarettes behind.”

“Oh,” Alfred said. “Uh…sorry about that. I really didn’t want to take them away from you.”

“I will be fine,” Ivan said. “I hope.” He had been trying not to think much about it, seeing as that would make the need to smoke much stronger. He wouldn’t necessarily call himself addicted, but he definitely would not deny a cigarette if it were given to him.

“You should get some sleep, big guy,” Alfred said. “We’ll probably need our strength once we leave this forest.”

“I have half a mind to not leave,” Ivan mused, looking at the stars. “You should sleep, you are injured.”

“No, we’re not playing that game,” Alfred said. “We can put as much on the fire as we want to and we’re both gonna sleep. And if you get a nightmare again…well, then we’ll just have to recreate what we did last night. I don’t mind.”

“You will start to mind,” Ivan said. He’d stopped burdening his sisters with that problem of his a long time ago. He didn’t want to pull Alfred into his problems.

“Then we’ll cross that bridge when we get there,” Alfred said. “Now, put what you want on that fire because I’m getting tired. It’ll probably take a while to fall asleep with my _throbbing face_.” Alfred was smiling as he said that. He was teasing and joking around. He wasn’t mad at him. He probably didn’t forgive him, but he wasn’t mad…

“I think you look better this way,” Ivan teased in response, reaching over to pick up a log. Alfred reached over to punch Ivan in the shoulder.

“Jackass,” Alfred scoffed, settling back into his tree. “Whoever we wind up with, they better know some proper first-aid or some shit. I could really use a bandage.”

“I already have your blood on my sleeves,” Ivan said, putting the last log on the fire. It was a bit bigger now, but it probably wouldn’t last longer than an hour or two. He leaned back, closing his eyes. “I am not about to ruin more of my clothes for a simple bandage.”

“Not like I’d want any of your dirty shit on my face,” Alfred said with a sigh. “Sweet dreams.”

* * *

Alfred winced as he started to wake up. He’d made the mistake of trying to breathe in through his nose and scrunched his nose in pain, which only made things worse. He groaned, leaning forward, his hands close to his face. God, he wanted to touch it, see if that would help, but he had to restrain himself. The rest of his face was sore as well… He’d definitely have to find some way to get some revenge. Not like…actually punching his face or something like that. Something more like…dipping his hand in some water while he’s sleeping.

Alfred glanced back at Ivan, blushing at the realization that they had fallen asleep together after Ivan’s nightmare last night. Alfred had leaned against him as they sat under the same tree. Ivan was slowly waking up behind him and Alfred took note of the fire. It _had_ gotten rather cold last night. That could serve as an excuse for their ridiculous cuddling. Alfred admitted that he was way too quick to forgive Ivan for what had happened. After all, the guy literally knocked him out. And blatantly refused to go outside when people were in danger of getting hurt.

Then again, Alfred really didn’t know about the history between Ivan and his friends. Or…former friends. Something was obviously up with Ivan, something not fully right. It wasn’t exactly Alfred’s place to say anything about it, but he was, admittedly, pretty worried. After all, ignoring all of this was what led up to Alfred getting punched in the face. Alfred was basically asking for it, though…

“Morning, sleepy head,” Alfred said, poking the charred logs with his shoe. He needed to distract himself from his own thoughts. The sad part was talking actually hurt a little, which was a major disappointment.

“How are you feeling?” Ivan mumbled as he tiredly rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

“I’m fucking dandy,” Alfred said flatly. “I still hold you responsible for my mess of a face. You’re gonna be the one to bandage it and whatever the hell else it needs.”

“Of course, sunflower,” Ivan said, patting Alfred’s head as he stretched. Alfred swatted him away. So they were back to nicknames, then? Back to acting like nothing happened? That was what they were good at, apparently. “I admit, you do look much prettier with more color to your face.”

“I’ll show you fucking pretty,” Alfred muttered under his breath as he stood up. He was really starting to feel hungry, wondering what time it was. The sun was up, so that was a good sign. Then again, with that forest, who knew how much time had passed. How long had he even been away from home?

“Did you say something, Fedya?” Ivan asked amusedly. When Alfred glanced back at him, he found a stupid smirk decorating the bastard’s face. Alfred glared at him.

“We should get moving, see if we can find the end of the forest soon,” Alfred said, looking down either side of the path. “If we haven’t seen anyone, that must mean they’ve called off searching, at least temporarily. We might have been stuck in that place for a while. Man, I hate how this place works. Magic is so weird.”

“It has its charms,” Ivan said as he stood up as well. He kicked at the ashes of their fire, some of the logs still remaining, but long cold. “Do you really think it is a good idea to put ourselves back into their hands?”

“Do we really have a choice?” Alfred asked. “I mean, you saw one of the Cats, or came close to him. He didn’t exactly show that he wanted to chill with us. And they’re not gonna leave us alone until we have our sides chosen for us.” Alfred stopped when he came to the cold realization that choosing a side meant that he probably wouldn’t see Ivan again. Someone was probably going to die, or at the very least, they would be separated. And if this place really was a dream and they miraculously woke up, if that was how this worked, Alfred would probably never see Ivan again in the real world. All he knew about the guy was that he lived somewhere near Moscow.

Alfred shivered at the thought. He’d grown used to Ivan at his side, no matter how annoying he could get.

“Then you choose which way we go,” Ivan said with a hum. Alfred looked down both directions cautiously. There was no telling which way was closer to the end of the forest, or what end they would reach. “It is only fair, all considering.”

“Yeah, yeah, okay,” Alfred said. He finally decided on going to the right, Ivan following happily behind him. “So…what are you going to do if it’s the Queen’s side?”

“I do not know,” Ivan admitted. He looked troubled when Alfred looked at him and Alfred nodded slowly. “I do not think I can run away anymore, no matter how much I want to.”

“I’ll be right there, big guy,” Alfred assured him. At least, he hoped he sounded reassuring. Then again, his voice sounded a little weird with his nose… “And, I mean, these aren’t really the people you knew.”

“They still look like the people I hurt,” Ivan said quietly. “Rabbit ears or no, seeing them reminds me of my mistakes and what I did.” He slid his hands into his pockets. “I have tried for years to forget what I did. Seeing them again is like shoving it in my face.”

“Well,” Alfred decided to take a chance and test just how far he could go with this, “maybe you weren’t made to forget it. Maybe you should look back at it and make sure you learn from the mistake.”

“Sadly, the people I hurt do not have the same luxury,” Ivan said. “And now you have been added to that list.”

Alfred groaned, slouching slightly as he walked. There was no getting through to Ivan. Maybe if Alfred knew what had happened…but he wasn’t going to pry. Not only was it rude, but it was an emotional topic for Ivan. He wasn’t exactly keen on getting hit again, no matter where it was.

They walked in silence, sadly giving Alfred plenty of time to think. On one hand, if they went with the Hatter, these were people Alfred knew. Well, mostly. He wasn’t exactly sure how well they could handle themselves in a fight, since he’d kind of missed that part. Sadly, Arthur was a total stick in the mud and they didn’t exactly have a lot of freedom. On the other hand, if they went with the Queen…who knew what would happen. From the sound of it, the Queen was a tyrant, along with her King and everyone else involved. They had just set fire to a town without remorse. And these were people Ivan knew…There was no doubt Ivan would choke up around these former friends of his and who knew if he could get over it. But seeing new people would mean making progress in this crazy world.

They were quiet for a really long time. Enough for Alfred to pay attention to the patterns of the throbbing of his nose. He occasionally looked at Ivan, who was once again taking an intense interest in the forest around them.

It felt like it had been fucking hours of them walking and not talking, but eventually Alfred saw something in the distance. An opening of the forest. He nudged Ivan’s side with his elbow and Ivan looked ahead nervously. Alfred tried to squint as they walked closer, but all he could see were some blurred outlines of people that eventually took notice of them. What Alfred did see, however, were rabbit ears on top of one person’s head. Well…that could go either way, but he was getting a feeling…

As they grew even closer, the one with rabbit ears came close to meet them as well. Ivan tensed before Alfred could get a good look. It was only a matter of seconds before Alfred finally got a good enough look at the person in front of them.

It was Feliks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> But y’all probably could have expected they’d run into the Queen’s people by now. More plot advancement, yay! Tons of shit happened this chapter, so that’s always a fun time. Makes up for the cliffhanger from last time, right? Hopefully… Anyway, a lot more stuff on their relationship and Ivan’s mental standpoint. 
> 
> Anyway, that’s it for now. So I’ll see you next time!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings For What's Ahead: Death and blood and a fairly descriptive panic attack.

Feliks sighed heavily as he finally reached them and Alfred looked at Ivan out of the corner of his eye to see how he was doing. Seeing these people made Ivan punch him in the face, after all. Who knew the actual story behind it all, but he wasn’t about to share, apparently.

“Finally,” Feliks said, looking them over impatiently. “So you two are the Alices?”

Alfred slowly nodded, since Ivan didn’t respond. Alfred was almost tempted to take hold of his hand to see if that would calm him down…They were already handcuffed, it’s not like it would change too much…

“We thought you guys actually died in here,” Feliks said with a snort, turning around. “You even think of running and the King will totally go after you. And not even the Queen can stop her from killing, no matter your title.”

“We’re not running,” Alfred assured him. As much as it seemed like Ivan wanted to run…they had agreed that they needed to do something. They couldn’t just sit around and wait for things to happen anymore. Once they spent enough time with the Queen, maybe they could figure out which Alice went with who and figure out what to do from there. Maybe the Cat could help them out, too. Who knew…but hopefully this wouldn’t end with one of them dying.

“Good to hear,” Feliks said with a nod, turning around. “You will be coming with us. We might not have permission to kill, but nothing was said about hurting you physically. I’ll do anything I need to in order to bring you back.”

“No problems here,” Alfred said, shaking his head. Feliks started walking and Alfred made to follow him, but Ivan didn’t look anywhere near ready to move. Alfred decided to take a chance and took hold of Ivan’s hand. Ivan flinched, but looked like he finally stopped spacing out, looking Alfred in the eyes. Ivan glanced at Feliks before looking back at Alfred. He nodded slowly before starting to move, following after Feliks.

His hand was shaking, gripping a bit harder onto Alfred’s. As they grew closer to the group outside the forest, Alfred noticed just how many there were. There were a ton of soldiers, sure, but they all had numbers carved into their armor, ranging from 1 to 10. The only people exempt to that rule were three men and a woman who stood in the center, looking very much like they were the people of authority. All of them were dressed like royalty, with matching dresses and suits, Feliks included.

“You said you thought we died,” Alfred said to Feliks before they got too close to the people. They hadn’t even completely left the forest yet. “How long were we in that forest?”

“About a week,” Feliks mused. “We were prepared to abandon this side today, actually.”

“Perfect timing, then, huh?” Alfred asked. Feliks didn’t say anything, he simply stopped in front of the other four. The woman was the closest and Alfred noticed a striking resemblance to…Ivan? Silvery hair, dark eyes, an unusually serious expression… She honestly looked like she could kill Alfred with just a look, not to mention the wicked knives already in her hands.

Ivan said he had two sisters…so where was the other one?

“Good job, Rabbit,” one of the men said, this one with fairly long, brown hair, but Alfred couldn’t see his eyes very clearly. There was another, a bit taller, with blonde hair and glasses (that lucky son of a bitch), and another, pretty short, with light brown hair. Alfred could see if he squinted that the last two had little A’s embroidered onto their chests.

The woman wordlessly walked up to them, scrutinizing them. Alfred honestly never felt more threatened in his life. When he looked at Ivan, however, he had an unreadable expression on his face. If this really was his sister, there was no telling how he was going to react. The other four, Alfred knew about. Knew, more or less, what reaction to expect out of him. But his own sisters? Ivan wasn’t saying anything, so maybe he had decided to keep it a secret that he knew the names of these people. Maybe that was a better idea than Alfred simply blurting out the names of everyone he knew.

“Let’s get them back to the Queen,” the woman said pointedly as she turned around. She didn’t even wait before walking along the path in front of them. Alfred squinted, trying to see what he could of their surroundings. He could see maybe a couple of towns and then something in the distance that looked huge…Maybe a castle if he tilted his head at the right angle?

The four men took their place behind Alfred and Ivan as they started walking. Well, this was certainly interesting…The rest of the…army around them followed behind, all of them behind the woman. She hadn’t even put away her knives, looking ready for a fight at any second. Who knew, maybe she was used to having to fight for her life…

“So…you got names for me?” Alfred asked curiously, keeping his voice low. He didn’t know how these people would react to them whispering to each other, but it was the best he could do. Alfred was desperate for some kind of conversation through all of this awkward encounter. Who knew if they would actually be allowed to talk for most of the time towards their destination, castle or not.

“Natalia,” Ivan said slowly, looking ahead at the woman, his sister. “The one with glasses is…Eduard. The short one, Ravis. And then Toris.” Ivan was keeping his speaking to a minimal, his voice shaking. He was around people he had apparently promised he would never see again…or something like that… This was probably a lot of stress on the poor guy.

Alfred squeezed his hand reassuringly and Ivan bit his lip, looking ahead at his sister. She looked like she would be younger, but then again, who knew. With this world, anything was possible. Hopefully, Ivan’s actual sister didn’t go around wielding knives. Ivan absolutely refused to look backwards, but that was to be expected. Alfred focused on trying to help Ivan feel better. He rubbed his thumb across Ivan’s knuckles, but it didn’t help Ivan calm down very much. Maybe just a little bit, but not much. But Alfred didn’t know what else he could do without doing something to piss these other people off.

As much as Alfred loved testing other people’s patience, he didn’t know what he could do safely. Sure, he could mess with Arthur because he couldn’t really touch them with his magic…but other than that, Alfred didn’t know what he could do. There was Natalia in front of them, who had sharpened knives in her hands, there were actual soldiers with what looked like rifles in their hands…The only thing Alfred knew for sure was that _hopefully_ the Queen’s ability to kill people at will couldn’t touch them. Hopefully. They’d be finding out soon, anyway.

This quiet wasn’t like when they were walking in the forest. That one was at least kind of comfortable, with someone he knew. Well…somewhat knew. This was stifling, a forced quiet. And it was making Alfred antsy quickly.

“Would you like to talk?” Ivan asked quietly. Alfred looked at him in surprise before giving a questioning look. “You are even more skittish than me right now. Are you alright?”

“Just bored,” Alfred said. He glanced at the others, but it looked like they were quiet enough that no one bothered to pay then any attention. “What even is there to talk about?”

“We can…always swap stories?” Ivan offered. “I would prefer to keep my mind elsewhere as well.”

“You got any?” Alfred asked curiously. Alfred had a few, but he wanted to see what kind of stuff Ivan could come up with.

“When I was little,” Ivan said, “I would always try to play on frozen lakes. My elder sister always told me how dangerous it was, but I never listened. One day, I fell in. Natalia was there to save me. We both caught terrible colds that lasted a week and Katyusha took care of us. Since then, Natalia usually never leaves my side unless she absolutely has to. And Katyusha has taken to making me scarves just in case I still feel cold.”

“That is absolutely freaking adorable,” Alfred snickered. He could just imagine a cute little Ivan sniveling under a blanket with a cold and wrapped up with a huge scarf that could take up his whole face. Oh, Alfred would kill for a picture of that! “Dude, thinking about a big scary guy like you as a kid is cute as all hell.”

“Careful, your obvious crush is showing,” Ivan said with a snicker and Alfred blushed, glaring at him.

“Please,” Alfred scoffed, rolling his eyes. “You broke my nose, if you forgot. How could I still have a crush on someone like that?”

“Still?” Ivan asked. The teasing in his voice was fucking clear and Alfred flushed, tripping on his own feet. He flushed even more when others glanced at him and Ivan stifled a laugh. “You still owe me a story,” Ivan said once everyone had returned to normal business.

“You know what, maybe I don’t wanna share a story with you now,” Alfred said pointedly. “Maybe I just don’t wanna deal with an asshole like you.”

“Just when I thought we were getting along,” Ivan hummed amusedly, lightly squeezing Alfred’s hand. Alfred blinked, only just realizing that they were, indeed, still holding hands. Strangely, Alfred didn’t make a move to let go, just staring at their hands. Yeah, Ivan was insufferable and loved to ruin the moment, and he actually broke Alfred’s nose during a situation where he ran away from helping people obviously in danger…

There was a ‘but’ somewhere in there, Alfred knew it. There had to be some kind of reasonable explanation for Alfred’s feelings towards this strange friend of his. Ivan had his moments, sure…He could be sweet and kind and he could be flirtatious as all hell…Was that really the only ‘but’ Alfred could come up with?

Alfred took a deep breath before he opened his mouth. “My brother and I used to pretend we were superheroes.” Ivan seemed actually surprised when Alfred started talking again. He had taken to looking around at the town around them that Alfred could only see with blurry vision. “One day…I went to the roof because I thought a little cape I made myself could actually make me Superman. I…jumped off the edge. Into a bush. And I broke my leg. Got me out of school for, like, a whole week, and a shit ton of ice cream, so I still think it was worth it. Closest I’ve ever gotten to flying, too. It felt awesome.”

“And you called me adorable,” Ivan said with a soft hum. “You like superheroes?”

“Well, duh,” Alfred scoffed. “They’re fucking awesome.”

“And your favorite?”

“Dude, that’s like asking a parent to pick a favorite child!” Alfred gasped. There was no way he could pick out just one superhero that he liked the most! He loved so many of them!

“A lot easier than it sounds,” Ivan mused, but he didn’t allow them to dwell long on the subject. “Do you have any other hobbies than reading comics?”

“Video games are also really cool,” Alfred said. “And you? Any other hobbies?”

“I admit I rather enjoy gardening,” Ivan mused. “Though I haven’t had much of a chance to do it recently.”

“You’re so lame,” Alfred groaned. “What next, are you gonna tell me you enjoy knitting?”

“And is there anything wrong with that?” Ivan asked, tilting his head slightly.

Alfred shrugged. “I guess not. Just means you’re a little boring is all. What, is your ideal night sitting inside by the fire with a good book?”

“I do admit that doesn’t sound bad,” Ivan said. “I assume your ideal night is something that involves a pompous dinner and an exciting place filled with people? I have to admit, that’s far from my ideal. Too many people can get rather annoying, if you ask me.”

“Well, I didn’t,” Alfred said with a sigh. “This is…awkward, don’t you think? Just…continuing on like normal? After what happened?”

“Do you think it is awkward?” Ivan asked innocently. He really wanted to just move past everything that happened. And he did apologize…but Alfred couldn’t really forget what happened. Part of it severely pissed him off, part of it scared him, and part of it made him want to find out what was causing Ivan so much pain.

“A little…” Alfred muttered. “I mean, that kind of argument isn’t really one you just walk away from, right?”

“Would you like to continue it now?”

“Well, no. I’d rather not continue it, actually…But…should we really be acting like it never happened?”

“I would prefer to,” Ivan said under his breath. “But if you do not wish to…”

Alfred let out a long sigh. He looked ahead to see that Natalia had stopped and Alfred stopped suddenly with Ivan. They were really close to the castle now, and Alfred hadn’t even noticed it. It was very…red, from what he could tell. It was all red bricks, apparently, but Alfred couldn’t see any details. It looked like they were in front of a freaking huge door, also with a red tint to it. Where could they find red freaking wood? When Alfred looked to the right, he noticed something that made him…oddly uncomfortable. It was like a cliff or something. He couldn’t see where it went off to, but it looked like something with a ravine at the bottom or something. Who decided to build a castle at the top of a cliff like this? That didn’t seem very safe…

“We can try again later,” Alfred said to Ivan, who nodded slowly, looking ahead nervously. His grip tightened once again on Alfred’s hand. Alfred couldn’t believe they were still holding hands and, despite everything, made him blush a little.

The doors were opened by more soldiers with numbers on their armor and their ensemble walked in together. Admittedly, this place was way bigger than either of the mansions they were in before. By a lot. Alfred was a little intimidated, so he stuck close to his big Russian bear for protection. There were a lot of hallways to go down and even more doors leading to who knew where…The windows were also an impressive sight, something Alfred never would have expected to see in his lifetime.

The hallway they entered in was incredibly long, but they marched right down it, until they reached another pair of big doors. This probably led to the throne room or something. Which mean they’d be meeting the Queen soon…This should also be Ivan’s sister if Alfred was guessing correctly, but who knew what she would be like. Alfred had forgotten to ask how close this Natalia was to the one Ivan actually knew…

The doors were opened by more soldiers and the room revealed to them held even more soldiers. They were armed at the ready, just in case the Alices tried to make a run for it, no doubt. It was pretty much expected of them at this point. They had been gone for a whole week… Who knew what that would do to a place like this…

At the very end of the room was a throne. Pretty basic stuff, but it was a pretty vibrant red, like the rest of the place. There were a few hearts decorating the place as well. What brought the most attention, however, was the woman sitting on the throne. She looked like some pretty serious business, with a huge red dress. Alfred wasn’t entirely sure with his fucked up vision, but it looked like she was pretty damn well-endowed as well. She had the same silvery hair as the other two siblings, but hers was cut fairly short.

One thing Alfred could tell as they grew closer and Natalia knelt in front of her…she had a glare that could cut through steel beams.

“If I had known it would have taken you a whole week, I would have sent someone more capable,” the woman, the Queen said harshly. Alfred glanced at Ivan, who stared ahead disbelievingly.

“That is not my sister,” he muttered. Alfred noticed that the rest of the room was kneeling to the Queen, everyone except Alfred and Ivan.

“You will kneel to your Queen,” the woman said harshly. What was the name Ivan had said? Kat…something…Katrina? Katherine?

Ivan, numb as he was because of everything around him, simply went to his knees, most likely to avoid conflict. Finally, Alfred let go of his hand, staying on his feet. He hadn’t bothered to care about titles with the Hatter, he wasn’t about to start here.

“I don’t kneel for anyone,” Alfred said simply. He was fairly sure that he couldn’t be hurt by this ability of hers, so he was free to see just how far he could push her. He most likely wouldn’t be shot. Hopefully. He’d been banged up enough by the people he’d met here.

“My, my, cocky aren’t we?” the Queen asked with a smile.

Alfred glanced at Ivan, who was glaring harshly at him. Alfred apparently just loved to make a scene, didn’t he? Well, he wasn’t about to kneel to anyone, especially not someone who would treat her apparent subordinates like she did. Alfred stayed firm in his stance. The rest of the room didn’t even move.

“You’ve met the Hatter, I’m sure,” the Queen continued languidly. “So you must know about that pesky rule. Our abilities do not affect each other, at least, that remains true for the Hatter, the Queen, and the Cats. I, personally, have never tested it out on an Alice, though I’ve heard stories.”

“Go ahead and give it your best shot,” Alfred said and nearly winced at his own words. Okay, maybe that was going a little too far.

“I know I can’t actually hurt you,” the Queen said with a wicked smile, “and I would prefer to keep you in good condition just in case you really are my Alice. But I would love to see just what my ability could to do the immune.” Alfred gulped as he saw her point a finger directly at him. Why was he so nervous about this? He couldn’t be hurt…But what was this bad feeling?

“Off with his head,” she said simply and with a tone like she was simply ordering tea.

Alfred froze as he felt a tingle run through his heart and his lungs felt like stone. It felt like all of his joints had locked up at once, but he was still loose as ever. Once he got his breath back, it quickened to an impossible pace. Thoughts and images flashed in front of his eyes…his whole life, everything he could remember. His thoughts went a mile a minute, going towards things he regretted, things he’d wished he’d done.

It actually felt like…he should be dying.

* * *

“Off with his head.”

Ivan immediately looked up at Alfred to make sure he was still safe. His head stayed on, which was always a good thing, but something was wrong. He was frozen in place, his eyes wide. He started trembling and, soon, his legs failed him. He let out a whimper as Ivan moved to catch him. He was shaking terribly, his eyes shut and his hands at his head. He was starting to curl up into a ball, whimpering and moaning and trembling. He broke out into a cold sweat, his breathing completely out of control.

“Alfred,” Ivan whispered, looking over the boy in his arms, trying to find some way to help him. What, exactly, had the Queen done to him?

He looked up at the woman…a person who looked exactly like his elder sister but couldn’t possibly be the same person. His sister was kind and wonderful and would never dream of hurting anyone. This person was cold, calculating, harsh. She had poison in her eyes.

“What a bore, I really can’t kill him,” the Queen hummed, looking to the side at the soldiers, who were still kneeling. “Looks like I’ll have to take compensation elsewhere. Off with their heads.” She sounded so bored as she spoke those words, the words that apparently would mean death for anyone it was directed at.

Ivan glanced at the people she pointed at and froze in shock to see that five soldiers slumped onto the ground in pools of blood, their heads cleanly cut and on the ground, just a few centimeters away from where they should have been. It had just been words, but it looked like an executor had done the job. The room was silent, save for Alfred’s whimpering. His mind hadn’t returned to where he was.

“Shame he couldn’t see,” the Queen mused, using Katyusha’s voice. Ivan felt a sense of rage boil inside him, knowing that there was some creature in this world that would dare defile his sister like this. “Let this be a lesson for defiance. I may not be able to hurt you, but I can do plenty more. Natalia. Bring them to a room. It seems the Hatter was kind enough to give us a package. We’ll keep them together. For now. Oh, and get a nurse to see to his nose, I can’t stand to look at such a mangled thing.”

Natalia finally stood, looking at them with cold, calculating eyes. What on Earth could have happened to these two for them to turn out like this? These were not his sisters and, without Alfred, Ivan had felt more alone than he ever had in this world. Surrounded by heartless versions of people he cared about, people he’d sworn never to hurt again, and complete strangers…it seemed the only person that cared about his wellbeing was shivering in his arms.

“Follow me,” Natalia said gruffly. There was no room for argument in her words. She most likely wasn’t afraid to use the knives in her hands. Ivan swallowed thickly, moving to help Alfred back to his feet. Alfred’s eyes were open now, but it didn’t look like he was seeing anything. Ivan, out of instinct and nothing more, placed a quick kiss to the side of Alfred’s forehead before moving to give him as much support as possible. It seemed Alfred could stand on his feet, just not very well.

Once they started following Natalia, who walked towards one of the many doors in the room, it seemed like Alfred could also walk on his own, albeit slowly and clumsily. Ivan was as silent as Natalia as they walked through the halls. Ivan hoped that this room of theirs was close, if only to give Alfred the chance to breathe properly again. Alfred had already been in enough pain already.

Finally, Natalia reached a door, pulling out a key from a pocket in her dress. She unlocked it, no doubt a message to them that the door would be locked. It would probably be guarded, too… Ivan hardly needed invitation to walk inside and the door shut behind them. This room actually had windows, but they were far too small to try and fit through, and with metal bars over them. They allowed enough lighting for Ivan to guide Alfred to the bed, which had a startling red comforter that Ivan paid no mind to.

“Alfred?” Ivan asked quietly and carefully, hoping not to startle the poor boy, who was still trembling. Alfred now took to holding onto Ivan’s sleeves tightly, his shaking getting worse. This was no doubt because Alfred was trying to stop it. “Darling, please, relax. She cannot hurt you. Do not focus on the shaking, it will stop on its own. Please, Fedya, listen to me.”

Alfred numbly shook his head, still not seeing Ivan properly.

Ivan carefully took hold of one of Alfred’s stiff hands, lightly rubbing circles into it. “Do not focus on your thoughts right now, they must be a dangerous place. Listen to me. I will not hurt you, I promise.”

“S-Scared,” Alfred muttered, tears starting to spill from his eyes. “It…h-hurts.”

Ivan hummed, using his free hand to wipe away the tears that he could.

“Trying to stop the shaking will only make it worse,” Ivan said. He knew from experience how to handle a panic like this. “I know this sounds scary and it’s not something you would like to do, but listen to me. Do not fight this. Let this panic happen. Allow yourself to feel these emotions and acknowledge them. Do not be afraid of them or they will control you.”

“I can’t.” Alfred’s voice was small. He closed his eyes tightly. Ivan released his hand and patted Alfred’s head slowly.

“Do you want me to stay away?” Ivan asked patiently.

“No!” Alfred blurted out, opening teary eyes once again.

“Do you want me close?” Ivan asked. Alfred nodded fervently. Ivan nodded in return and took Alfred’s head into his hands, bring it closer to his chest. Alfred’s trembling hands clutched onto Ivan’s shirt. “Please, my sunflower, listen to what I said. You are scared, I understand. But what she did is in the past now.”

“I-I felt like…I died,” Alfred said in a few gasping breaths. Ivan nodded slowly, using one hand to cradle Alfred’s head and the other to rub circles into his back. It was awkward with the shackles, but they could make do.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Ivan asked. “Does that help?”

“I…I like it when you talk,” Alfred said carefully.

“Do you care what I talk about?” Ivan asked and decided to make the question a bit more specific. “Would you like me to coach you through this?”

“Sure. Okay.”

Ivan hummed. “Alright. First, we need to focus on your breathing, okay? I will count to four as you breathe in, then I will count to eight as you breathe out. Can you do that?”

Alfred nodded.

Ivan counted, keeping track of Alfred’s breathing. With a focus on the numbers, the shaking calmed down, as did Alfred. But not by a lot. He still wasn’t listening to Ivan’s other advice.

“Keep breathing in that pattern,” Ivan instructed. “Count in your head and listen to me.” Ivan waited a few seconds to make sure Alfred was still on a good pattern. “You need to relax. You are holding onto this panic and it will not do you any good. Let it go, let it move through you. Accept your feelings, do not fight them.”

They sat for a while, maybe fifteen minutes before Alfred slowly moved away, his shaking mostly gone by now. He wiped away a few of his tears, looking at Ivan. He looked exhausted, but that was to be expected.

“I knew you could handle it,” Ivan said with a soft smile, kissing Alfred’s forehead again.

“I’m tired,” Alfred admitted. “We just woke up not too long ago.”

“You can sleep if you need to,” Ivan said. “It does not seem like anyone is intent on disturbing us for a while.”

“I’m sorry,” Alfred blurted out. “I made you help me through that and it was my stupid ass that got myself into that mess.”

Ivan shook his head. “You have absolutely nothing to worry about. But if you are intent on apologizing for it, I forgive you. Now, sleep if you need to. Just a short nap. That must have taken a lot out of you, yes?”

“Thanks, big guy,” Alfred said, offering a weak smile. Surely, he didn’t feel completely better, but it was a huge step in the right direction from where they had started. Whatever the Queen did to him, it struck a major nerve and caused a full-blown panic attack. Alfred’s mind thought he had actually died, causing a major shock to his system. And if the Queen had done it once, Ivan had no doubt she was willing to do it again.

Ivan decided to skip out on telling Alfred about the five soldiers that died because of him as he helped Alfred into a lying position, Ivan sitting comfortably beside him.

“You sure do have a lot of pet names for me,” Alfred mused with a yawn as he got comfortable. “I think I deserve to have more than one, don’t you think?”

Ivan smiled, patting Alfred’s head. He was calm now, which was good. Or as calm as he could get for now. Ivan knew what this felt like and he knew Alfred wouldn’t feel in the best of shape for a little while.

“Vanya,” Ivan said quietly. “It is what my sisters call me.”

“Vanya, huh?” Alfred asked tiredly. Ivan had to admit, he did like the way it sounded coming from Alfred’s lips, with Alfred’s voice. It was something he could maybe get used to… But now was not the time to be thinking like that.

Alfred dozed off in no time, leaving Ivan alone with his thoughts and a startling lack of cigarettes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots and lots of things happening in here, would you look at that. As I’ve said before, the characters in here are definitely not like what I think the characters are really like. So the Ukraine in Wonderland is far from the Ukraine in the “real world”, which you’ve already seen. Starting now there will be a bit more blood and violence, slowly living up to the M rating. And Alfred and Ivan’s relationship should be moving a bit faster now towards where we all know you want it to go.
> 
> In any case, that’s all for now! I’ll see you next time!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings:  
> More death and blood, but not extremely graphic.

“Dammit!” Arthur shouted as he walked back into the Hare’s mansion, slamming his fist into the open door. “How could I have been so unbelievably stupid?”

“I think you’re being a bit harsh on yourself,” the Hare offered and Arthur spun around to glare at him.

“I had them, Hare. I had them right here and I lost them. And now they are in the hands of the Queen! This could very well mean our own damn deaths!”

“We can get them back,” the Hare said calmly. Arthur wanted to punch the idiot in the face. Now was not the time to be positive! Now was the time to be realistic. They had waited for a week outside of that damn forest, hoping that the Alices would come out of that side! But of course luck couldn’t be on their side twice in a row! And now they had to deal with rebuilding the town and looking to the damages and loses. Luckily none of the main titles had gotten hurt in the chaos, but the regular towns people were another story.

“Just…make yourself useful somewhere else,” Arthur said, trying to breathe deeply. He couldn’t make a good decision as a leader like this.

“Are you sure you want to be alone?” the Hare asked hesitantly. Arthur glowered at him, but the Hare just smiled softly with a nod, backing away. “Alright, then. I will…see to the army.”

Arthur scoffed as the Hare left. Army, yes, that was what it was called. In reality, it was more of a band of civilians, all barely trained and definitely not prepared for the fight coming with the Queen. Arthur had almost hoped that he wouldn’t have to be the one in charge when the Alices showed up. He couldn’t go down in history as the Hatter that failed. It wasn’t like that damn prophecy was helping anyone figure out what was actually meant to happen…

The Caterpillar had said he had more or less figured out who could be his Alice, but there really was no way to tell for sure. And the Queen was more likely to make more rash decisions on this matter. The second she had a suspicion about which Alice was hers…the other would be dead within minutes. Which didn’t exactly leave Arthur in a good place.

“Am I sure I want to be alone?” Arthur scoffed, making his way to his study. The Hare had a habit of testing Arthur’s patience and moving past set boundaries, but where had he gotten an idea through his head that Arthur actually need his company? It was preposterous, ridiculous! “Damn him,” Arthur snapped, slamming open the door to his study.

Now was not the time to be focusing on his stupid ally and focus more on the matter at hand. The Queen had the Alices. They couldn’t just attack; they were outnumbered and outmatched. Which meant that they would have to bide their time. The loud one had a habit of testing people’s patience, which meant that he might be in danger. The tall one might just be safe, but his close proximity to the other Alice put him in danger. There was no way for Arthur to send in a spy without them being spotted and killed, meaning he was at a complete disadvantage.

He might just have to wait and see what would happen, but that thought put him on edge. Just waiting would most likely result in a lot of death and his side losing this battle. He was nervous, he couldn’t help that.

Maybe he should have made Francis stay…

Arthur shook his head violently. The Hare was none of his concern. He was the Hatter, after all. He had a title to live up to and he couldn’t let anyone down. More than he already had…

* * *

“I don’t see why we have to dress up for her,” Alfred grumbled. They were in another form of a shower, but it was a bit gaudier than the one at the Hare’s mansion, but it worked just as well. There was even a tub in this one, not like either of them actually considered using it. Naturally, Alfred was still extremely uncomfortable with the idea of seeing Ivan naked, but at least this time was better than the last.

“Do not antagonize her again,” Ivan scoffed, ruffling his hair as he got out from the spray of the water. Alfred ducked in next, facing away from the other man. He’d gotten as good a look as any when Ivan was showering. Alfred was actually kind of sad he didn’t have his glasses on him because that meant he couldn’t see any of the details on the guy he was handcuffed to.

“Don’t worry, not my intention,” Alfred muttered. He really hated the idea of acting like a child who had learned his lesson after being reprimanded. He needed to find some way to get back at the Queen without risking his sanity again. He shivered at the idea of going through that panic even just one more time. Alfred made quick work of getting himself clean before shutting off the water.

There was a change of pants that the Queen had been ‘gracious’ enough to give them. If she could have given them a change of shirts or jackets, she probably would have. Alfred had half a mind to just not put them on, but he knew how that would end. They were pretty high quality, he noticed as he slipped them on.

“You should relax more,” Ivan offered with a smile once they returned to facing each other. “You are very tense.”

“Shouldn’t I be?” Alfred raised a brow. “She literally tried to kill me and you’re saying I shouldn’t be tense about it?”

“If you let her see how much she affected you, you give her more power,” Ivan said carefully. He folded his old pair of pants as he spoke, taking interest in the clothing instead of Alfred. He also took hold of the little bandage that was offered to them. A nurse of some kind had helped Alfred out (he noted she had a 6 on her shirt) and said to put on the bandage after their shower. Ivan was probably more than happy to help. “So my suggestion would be to make sure she does not know what you went through. Act as normal, just do not press anything to put yourself at more risk.”

“What, are you speaking from experience?” Alfred asked, but regretted it the second it was out of his mouth. Ivan raised a brow before moving to put on the bandage. “Don’t answer that, it was a stupid question.” Alfred winced in pain as Ivan’s hands brushed against his nose. On the bright side, it didn’t look like any permanent damage and his nose would heal just fine on its own. It would just take time…

“We should get to that dinner she promised us,” Ivan said simply, looking at the door. But it was obvious that he really didn’t want to leave. They were safe as long as they were in the bathroom together, as awkward as that sounded…

“If we’re lucky she won’t even be there,” Alfred said pointedly. “What, do we just leave our old shit here?”

“I am sure she has servants or something for that,” Ivan said distastefully. Alfred smirked and glanced at the pile of clothes they were leaving behind. The Queen had apparently decided to try leaving Ivan a scarf as well. She wanted to try changing anything they could actually take off, but Ivan hadn’t even touched the fabric. Alfred happily picked it up before Ivan could make it to the door. Ivan raised a brow at him, but Alfred wrapped the scarf around his neck. It was soft and cozy and honestly felt kind of nice.

“There, now we match and she can’t get pissy about us not respecting her gifts,” Alfred chimed, hitting Ivan’s shoulder. “I know you’re not gonna touch it, anyway.”

“You do not look half bad,” Ivan said with a small smile. Alfred laughed, looking down at the thick white scarf around his neck. It looked extremely similar to the one Ivan had on, though there was a slight difference in how they wore it. While Ivan left the tails over his back, Alfred had wound the scarf with the tails in the front. He didn’t think he could look half bad and Ivan seemed to like it.

The second they left the bathroom, there were soldiers outside, both with 10s on their chests, that stood at attention for them. They’d been around since they were basically given orders about going to that dinner. Alfred had apparently slept for a few hours, which honestly felt extremely amazing, and now he was actually kind of hungry. And food from a Queen? It had to be pretty good. At least he was pretty sure it wouldn’t be poisoned until they at least talked to them for a while.

Alfred slipped his hand into Ivan’s as they walked. Who knew who they would be having dinner with, maybe some of Ivan’s former friends…Ivan was tense, but not as much as before. Maybe it was because he’d seen them before, or maybe it was because Alfred was trying his best to keep him calm. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Ivan had already gone so far as to physically hurt Alfred to get away from them…maybe he didn’t want to go to those lengths again.

The dining room in the castle was a hell of a lot bigger than the one at Francis’ mansion. It looked like something suitable for large, regal parties, but a place was only made for a handful of people. Natalia was already there, sitting with perfect posture at one of the perfectly clean places in the center of the large table. It was a lot less cluttered than the Hare’s house, but it looked a lot less comfortable, less lived-in.

As Alfred and Ivan were led to their seats, alone on one side of the table, Natalia looked harshly at both of them.

“You were not supposed to wear that scarf,” Natalia said coldly before they could even sit down.

“I think it looks good on me,” Alfred said proudly. The Queen wasn’t anywhere in sight, so he could let his mouth go on and on as much as he liked. As long as Natalia didn’t have any knives hidden in her dress. “Or are you just jealous that she gave us a gift and not you?”

“The Queen has given her people many things,” Natalia snapped as they sat down and Alfred raised a brow. “I do not need to be jealous of a simple scarf.”

“But you are,” Alfred said with a teasing smile. Ivan hit him in the side with his elbow and Alfred glared at him. The doors to the dining room opened again and Alfred watched as the four people Ivan knew walked into the room. They seemed a bit more relaxed now, but that was most likely because the Queen wasn’t in there yet. Alfred would definitely take advantage of this time while he could. They all sat on either side of Natalia. Ravis and Feliks simply looked down at their plates, but the other two at least seemed interested in them.

“So, what exactly are your titles?” Alfred asked. Ivan elbowed him again, but Alfred just tried to ignore it, groaning only a little. Ivan hit hard when he wanted to…

“Oh, um,” Toris was the first to respond and it looked like Eduard was, in fact, very interested, “I am the Duchess.” Alfred would have questioned someone like him being called a Duchess, but he’d stopped questioning things about this world. If Natalia could be King, who said Toris couldn’t be a Duchess?

“You do not need to respond to them,” Natalia said sharply.

“And the Ravis and myself are Aces,” Eduard said calmly, apparently disregarding her. So he used a name instead of a title…but was that because there was more than one of them?

“Wait, there are two?” Alfred asked. “I thought we were the only shared title or whatever is going on.”

“Some titles can have two, or more,” Eduard explained. “The main titles, of course, do not overlap.”

“So, wait, you guys are Aces, like the playing cards?” Alfred asked. That would explain all of the people with numbers on their chests…

“Playing cards?” Toris asked carefully, like he didn’t understand. Of course he didn’t.

“How many Aces are there now? Just you two?” Alfred asked curiously. He was getting a little nervous. There was no food on the table yet, which just might mean that they were waiting on the Queen before they ate. Alfred wanted to get through at least some of his questions answered.

Ravis nodded nervously and Natalia scoffed, glaring at the four around her.

“So how do you think you’re going to figure out who is who?” Alfred asked curiously.

“Obviously the Hatter failed with the Caterpillar,” Eduard mused. “I will do my best and the Queen is extremely good as a judge of character.”

“Oh, I bet,” Alfred said with a deadpan voice. The door opened again and, this time, the five in front of him stood up. The Queen must be arriving… Ivan carefully stood up as well once Natalia sent them a glare. Alfred begrudgingly stood as well, slowly. The Queen entered happily, well as happy as she could be. A few guards followed her into the room as she sat at the only head of the table that had a place setting. She was actually pretty far away, thank God…

“I see you have learned to behave,” the Queen said happily. The five sat down and Alfred happily sat down, if only to have something to do other than respond. Seeing her made him nervous, hearing her voice made him even more nervous. A part of him nearly flinched every time she opened her mouth because there was a slight possibility she could say _those words_. “I trust everything is to your liking?”

“Yeah, it’s great,” Alfred said, since it didn’t look like Ivan was going to talk soon. He was still in a bit of shock, so talking had to be kind of hard for him.

“You will refer to her as ‘Your Majesty’ when you have been graced with her presence,” Natalia hissed at him.

“Oh, yeah, of course,” Alfred bit back sarcastically. “My apologies, Your Grace.” Ivan elbowed him again and Alfred turned to glare at him.

Finally, the food came into the room and Alfred sighed with relief. He had never wanted a meal to finish faster than he did now. The room was quiet and it looked like everyone else was comfortable with the silence that followed with the food. Everyone except Alfred, for obvious reasons, and Ivan, for even more obvious reasons.

It wasn’t until they were nearly finished eating that the Queen decided to speak up again.

“So, Ivan, you have been rather quiet,” she said with a happy lilt in her voice. Ivan tensed, swallowing his food carefully. “That is your name, correct?”

“Yes,” Ivan said slowly. He corrected himself shortly afterwards with a quick “Your Majesty”.

“At least one of you knows your place,” the Queen hummed and Alfred clenched his jaw. “You know, I would rather prefer you to be my Alice over your…partner. And you? How do you enjoy my hospitality? Better than the Hatter, of course.”

Ivan stayed quiet, his brow furrowed as he tried to think of something to say. No doubt, his brain wasn’t working properly around all of these people, especially considering the fact that his ‘sister’ definitely wasn’t acting like his sister.

“Is that any way to speak to royalty?” the Queen scoffed harshly and Ivan winced slightly.

“Oh, yeah,” Alfred blurted out, at least hoping to distract her if nothing else. “You know, I definitely don’t miss the people that actually care about the lives of their subordinates. But, hey, you both do threaten to kill us, so there’s no huge difference.”

The Queen glared at him, her eyes dark. Alfred swallowed thickly. At least this time, Ivan didn’t elbow him for his terrible decision making. The Queen sighed, tapping her fingers against the table.

“Statements like that make me very angry, Alfred, was it?” the Queen said simply, looking over at the soldiers that stood in the room stock still. “I think I need to let out a little bit of this anger. Off with their heads.”

Alfred stared in shock as four of the soldiers toppled over, their heads bouncing off the ground as they traveled away from their bodies. Alfred stood up, turning his glare back to the Queen, if only to look away from the pools of blood that no one else in the room seemed to care about.

“What the hell is wrong with you?!” Alfred snapped. “You can’t just do that!”

“I do believe I can,” the Queen said calmly, examining her nails. “And I did. No use crying over it.”

Alfred stepped forward, but something caught the chain and he glared back at Ivan, who looked into his eyes in warning. Alfred felt rage boil up inside of him as he turned back to the Queen, looking at her stupid, smug smile that he was just _dying_ to wipe off of her face.

“Are you not going to finish your dinner?” she asked calmly, biting into her meal as if she didn’t just create four corpses on the fucking ground.

“I’m not hungry anymore,” Alfred growled. He glared at the five sitting down across the table. “What the fuck is wrong with you guys? You just sit here and take this bullshit?”

“Alfred,” Ivan stood up now, just behind him. “Calm down.”

“No!” Alfred snapped, glaring right into his eyes. “Don’t you dare tell me to calm down!” She was hurting just innocent people because she could. She wasn’t even that angry, she just wanted to piss Alfred off and it worked. She was looking for ways to control him, either by hurting Alfred or innocent people. And he wasn’t about to let it work on him. He wouldn’t be intimidated.

“I don't envy the Hatter to have an Alice like you,” the Queen scoffed. Alfred didn’t even bother looking in her direction.

“You don’t even know whose Alice I am,” Alfred said slowly. “And you don’t scare me.”

Ivan shifted slightly, glancing at the door. He wanted to get out of there before anything else happened to either of them.

“I believe these two are finished with their meals,” the Queen hummed. “Guards, bring them back to their room.”

“I’ll gladly leave your presence,” Alfred growled, turning and walking to the door that the guards were already holding open.

“Keep this attitude up,” the Queen said happily, “and I’ll make sure to correct your terrible manners.”

“My parents have been trying for years, so good luck on that one,” Alfred said simply, walking ahead of Ivan out of the room. He couldn’t stand to be within a hundred feet of that bitch.

* * *

Ivan was nervous, anxious. He didn’t know what to do. Surviving a dinner with the people he’d promised to never see again was hard enough. And then the woman masquerading as his sister decided to speak up and make things harder. Ivan was grateful for Alfred taking the spotlight off of him, but it came at a heavy price, evidently.

Ivan felt sick to his stomach at the sight of more innocent death, but this time Alfred had actually seen it. And Ivan wasn’t sure how to deal with someone in a state like that.

Alfred stormed ahead of him and ahead of the soldiers meant to be escorting them. Ivan’s mind raced to remember what Alfred had done to calm him down. Once they reached the room and it was unlocked, Alfred nearly flung the door open and slammed it closed behind them.

“Alfred,” Ivan said carefully.

“No, don’t,” Alfred shook his head. “You’re allowed to get all pissed off and punch me in the fucking face, but now that _I’m_ mad I have to calm down?”

“I don’t want you to make any decision you are going to regret later,” Ivan said. Alfred was…irrational. This could have been a mixture of his panic from before and this rage.

“I help people as much as I can!” Alfred shouted. “And first you make it impossible for me to help people and now it’s my fucking fault those four soldiers are dead? Because that’s sure as hell the way she’s making it look and she’s the fucking Queen which means what she says goes!”

“Alfred, please,” Ivan tried. Alfred clenched his hands into shaking fists, glaring at him. The blue of his eyes was even more vibrant than he thought possible and, under different circumstances, Ivan would say that Alfred actually looked very very attractive. But first he had to deal with a very pissed off American teenager.

“Fuck off.”

Ivan carefully moved forward and gripped onto Alfred’s wrists, though loosely. Ivan looked him in the eyes with hopefully a calm expression on his face.

“Sunflower, please listen to me,” Ivan said. “Your anger is very well founded and I understand. But please, if you continue like this, you will do something you will regret. Trust me.”

Alfred took a deep breath. “Then what should I do?”

“If you want to let your anger out on me, fine,” Ivan said. “I’ve been through worse and I can handle it. Or…you can do like you offered to me and perhaps hit the bed.”

“You got any smokes?” Alfred joked, his lips twitching just slightly into a smile. “She knows how to get to me. All she has to do is say one fucking word and she’s basically in control of me. How am I supposed to not let her know she’s getting to me?”

“It is…very difficult,” Ivan said. “I will be there for you if you need me, but that is all I can offer to you.” Ivan decided to take a chance, seeing that Alfred had relaxed a little bit, and lightly ran his hands through Alfred’s hair. Alfred looked at him carefully, but didn’t break eye contact.

“Do you ever think about how weird this relationship is?” Alfred asked with a slight laugh.

“I try not to,” Ivan said.

“Yeah, it’s not like we’re gonna see each other after this, anyway,” Alfred said, taking hold of Ivan’s hand and looking at it closely. Ivan frowned at the thought. For some reason, it made him kind of…sad to think that he might not see Alfred again. As nice as it would be to be back in the normal world…he still wanted to see Alfred once this was over. “Thanks, though, for talking at least some sense into me. I’m still pissed beyond belief, but not at you. I’m sorry I brought up before. That wasn’t fair.”

“You had a point,” Ivan said. “I had no right to hit you, let alone in your face.”

“Well, you know what I say?” Alfred offered, releasing Ivan’s hand and looking back in his eyes. “If our little relationship won’t even matter after all of this is over, let’s agree to just…wipe the slate clean. No ‘sorry’s or ‘I forgive you’s…but a clean slate and we can start over. Just… without the awkward first meeting this time. Sound good?”

Ivan smiled. “I would love that.”

“Kay, then, big guy,” Alfred said, patting his shoulder, “I hope you don’t mind my broken nose, some crazy guy just punched me in the face.”

“I think it looks rather good on you,” Ivan said with a smirk. “Adds some character to your boring face.”

“Boring?” Alfred scoffed. “I will have you know, sir, that this gorgeous face has had many a cheerleader falling for it.”

“I am not surprised.” Ivan smiled. “You Americans have such low standards.” Alfred balked and Ivan couldn’t help but laugh a little. It was fun to tease him again like…normal. Then again, could anything be considered normal with them?

“Well, if I have low standards, what does that say about you?” Alfred argued and stopped almost immediately, that adorable blush spreading over his freckles. Ivan let out a louder laugh. Alfred didn’t even bother hiding his crush anymore and it was fantastic!

“It says many things, my darling,” Ivan laughed. “Let’s go to bed, unless you want to continue to embarrass yourself?”

“You know what, fuck it.” Alfred laughed, rolling his eyes. “I would love to sleep with you, Vanya.” A feeling shot through Ivan’s stomach at hearing Alfred say that little nickname, something that felt so right and just made him feel so…comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time. Ivan loved it. He wanted to feel it again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hng, I don’t know why this is so hard. I know what I want to do and get done. I’m really close to another big plot point, I just need one teeny tiny thing to happen first that I’ve been building up to for so long! I need these two idiots to work out their feelings faster, dammit! On the bright side, things are proceeding on schedule and the Queen is actually helping along our cause, as terrible as she is. (I’m so sorry Ukraine I don’t want to use your character like this, but it comes with an explanation, I swear.)
> 
> Anyway, I’ll see y’all next chapter!


	10. Chapter 10

It was almost stiflingly quiet. Alfred shifted where he sat, a bit closer to Ivan, where he could feel at least a little comfortable. They were under the icy cold stare of Natalia as she looked at them from across the room. They’d been woken up obnoxiously early, given food (thankfully the Queen was ‘too busy’ for breakfast), and then forced into another stupid sitting room. This one felt far less lived-in than the one at the Hare’s place. And it was far less comfortable. Especially since they were alone with Natalia. And no one had said a word for the long time they’d been there. It felt like it had been fucking hours…

Alfred licked his lips, ready to talk. Ivan gave him a cautious look and Alfred shrugged. He wouldn’t do something that could get him killed, at least. He just needed to do…something.

“So, aren’t you supposed to be figuring out which Alice we are?” Alfred asked carefully, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. Natalia turned her glare singly on him and he shivered, but kept his composure. “Not to be rude or anything, but I’m getting kind of impatient, continuously playing this game. There has to be a better way to find answers than staring at and talking with us, right?”

“I would prefer not to be in a room with you,” Natalia said stiffly. She glanced at Ivan. “You, I can tolerate. But the other one… These are my orders and I cannot leave you alone until we know which one to kill.”

“That’s a…little harsh, don’t you think?” Alfred winced.

“We need what’s best for this world,” Natalia said.

“And that would be the Queen?” Ivan asked hesitantly. Natalia seemed completely taken aback by such behavior. In fact, Alfred was a little surprised. Ivan had been fairly quiet since coming here, but at least his old friends weren’t in the room. Just one of his sisters, who, hopefully, wasn’t like this in real life.

“It has always been the Queen,” Natalia said. That was an interesting piece of history, but Alfred could have figured that out on his own. The Queen was a title, but was it the only form of government these people had ever had? Why was the Hatter so powerful if he wasn’t meant to rule something? Alfred tried to think back to that riddle again. The Alice for the Hatter was going to help a revolution…and the Alice for the Queen was going to prevent…cruelty? If Alfred remembered correctly… And then there’s the idea of making sense of all the faces. What did that mean, exactly?

Could it mean that it was an Alice’s job to decide who would make a better ruler?

Alfred rubbed at his temples. Why was this so hard to figure out?

“Is the Queen really helping all those people?” Alfred decided to ask. This was a chance, and most likely a very bad decision, but it was better than sitting at a stand-still. “Hell, she probably killed a ton when she had you guys attack that town.”

“It is for what’s best for the country,” Natalia said stiffly. “I don’t expect someone like you to understand the sacrifices a Queen has to make.”

“And what about her King?” Alfred asked. As far as he knew, usually Kings reigned higher, but that could be a different case here. Either way, they were both really high up on the royalty chain.

“My job is to follow her orders,” Natalia said. “She cannot leave this castle, there are too many things that need her attention. I am her pawn, her voice, her movements where she cannot reach.”

“And what, exactly, are her orders for us?” Alfred asked. “What does her voice say now?”

“To find out who is who as quickly as possible and kill the Hatter’s Alice by any means necessary,” Natalia said.

“And what’s so bad about the Hatter?” Ivan asked carefully. “What’s so bad about him taking the crown for himself?”

Natalia scoffed. “He does not know what he is doing. Unlike the Hatter, the Queen is a hereditary title. Just because someone wants it and thinks they can handle that burden does not mean that they can or should. The Hatter doesn’t even know what he’s asking of our Queen. He wants impossible things and his revolution cannot be allowed to succeed. If that means killing one of you, then I will gladly do it.”

So at least Natalia wanted what was best for this world. Or at least, what she thought was best for this world. Maybe that was the same for the Queen…but she had a cruel twist to her ideals. The Hatter and his team only wanted what they thought was best as well. Alfred admittedly didn’t know much about the treatment of the people in this world. All he really knew about were the cruelty of the Queen, which he’d been able to witness first hand. But were her laws and ideals really that bad for the world? After all, Alfred had only really seen a handful of towns. Sure, her way of doing things was really out of line, but…

Maybe that was what the Alice was for. To prevent cruelty…

“Hey,” Alfred said and Natalia glared at him, apparently assuming he would question her Queen again. Alfred rolled his eyes. “You know the prophecy, right? Can you tell it to us? The whole thing?”

“I don’t see why that’s necessary for you to know,” Natalia said stiffly.

“We want to find out which Alice is which just as badly as you do,” Ivan assured her. “Please, sist… Please. Tell us.”

Natalia let out a heavy sigh. “ _With all of the players in their places, But with no one left to cover the bases, For The Queen and The Hatter, An Alice will fall and make quite the clatter. A helper for The Queen and her rule, An Alice will prevent all that is cruel. Assistant for The Hatter and the people, An Alice will aid in the upheaval. With all of the players in their places, Only one will make sense of all the faces_.”

“Cover the bases…” Alfred mused, trying to piece together what he could. “I don’t get it…it said an Alice will fall. Only one…but there’s two of us.”

“Save your breath,” Natalia said. “Scholars have been trying to make sense of it for years to try and figure out what it means. They’ve been trying even harder since two of you fell. But no one’s come up with any answers.”

Alfred came up with one thought, but he wasn’t exactly sure if he would be right. _What if only one of us is an Alice_? That would certainly put a new spin on things, but why would two of them drop if only one of them was an Alice? And the way everything was phrased…it didn’t make sense. Obviously, it was Ivan that was supposed to ‘make sense of all the faces’ since Alfred was having no luck.

“Well, what are your ideas for finding out which is for the Queen?” Ivan asked, leaning forward. “The Hatter had the Caterpillar, though he had no luck through simply talking with us. So what is your plan?”

Natalia narrowed her eyes. “That is not something you need to know.” She stood up and Alfred nearly flinched at the sudden movement. “Stay here, there are guards outside the door that won’t hesitate to hurt either of you.”

“Aw, where are you going?” Alfred pouted. “We were just starting to get to know each other.”

Natalia scoffed before leaving, slamming the thick door behind her and leaving the two alone. Again. Alfred would have found himself annoyed with how many times he was left alone with Ivan if he didn’t enjoy the guy’s company so much.

When _did_ he start enjoying his company again?

“So,” Alfred said, leaning back and lacing his hands behind his head, “alone again, huh?”

“Yes,” Ivan said slowly. He looked almost nervous, but Alfred hadn’t noticed it before. Sure, the guy was antsy at breakfast, but that was because of those four, right? But he looked just as nervous now…Weird… Alfred opened his mouth to say something, but Ivan beat him to the punch. “You really meant what you said about that restart, yes?”

“Uh, yeah,” Alfred said carefully. Ivan did sound nervous, how weird. The whole time Alfred had known him, the guy had only lost his cool a few times and it was over something extremely dramatic for him.

“And…do you really think we will never see each other again after all of this is over?” Ivan asked.

Alfred hated the pit that grew in his stomach at those words. He regretted saying them the night before, too. The idea of not seeing Ivan again was…honestly terrible. He hated the idea of not seeing his Russian bear ever again. Just imagine the kind of hole that would leave in his life.

“Y-yeah,” Alfred said carefully.

“Then, would you mind if I tried something?” Ivan asked carefully. “If we will most likely only know each other for who knows how long, maybe just a few days…”

“Go ahead, dude,” Alfred said. He was honestly kind of curious. What was making Ivan so skittish and nervous? Alfred was almost scared that the guy was about to just yell in his face or something about how stupid it was Alfred had that _teeny tiny_ crush on him. Or hated him for talking too much. Both very likely, honestly.

Ivan sat facing him for a little while, licking his lips occasionally and alternating staring at Alfred and the couch between them.

“Um…would you mind…closing your eyes?” Ivan asked. Alfred nearly said something along the lines of ‘what, are you gonna kiss me?’ but knew better than to make a stupid decision like that. So he kept his mouth shut, nodded, and closed his eyes.

Now he was extremely nervous. Butterflies were fluttering up a fucking storm in his stomach as he sat still. He didn’t know what to expect. Sure, a kiss was high up on his hopes of what would happen, but he knew the likelihood of that. It totally wasn’t going to happen. So aside from that, he hoped Ivan wasn’t about to hit him. Maybe he’d found a gift or something and wanted to give it to him? Was it the revolver? Alfred knew quite a few things he could do with that revolver. One thing that came to mind was-

Alfred’s train of thought crashed to a halt when he felt something soft brush his lips. There was barely contact, for maybe half a second, if that, and it didn’t even cover Alfred’s entire lips. But damn did it feel like an eternity. A little spark of electricity on his skin, a fucking thunderstorm in his stomach. Alfred snapped his eyes wide open as he looked at Ivan in surprise. Ivan’s face was almost completely red as he quickly looked away, extremely noticeable with his pale complexion.

“I…um…I’m sorry,” Ivan said simply, turning around almost completely. He looked about ready to stand up and try to walk away, despite the fact that they were handcuffed. “I know you might not have wanted that…I just wanted to…you can ignore me if you want…”

Ivan did actually move to stand up and Alfred followed quickly after him, a hand on Ivan’s shoulder to turn him around.

“Don’t you dare run away from me, big guy,” Alfred said simply before going in for another kiss.

* * *

Ivan had no idea what he was thinking. Alfred had a crush on him, yes, but that didn’t automatically mean he wanted to kiss him or get to know him very well…or even like him a lot. Regardless of what Alfred said, Ivan did punch him. Ivan did break his nose. He had just wanted to let out his feelings in the way that resulted in him talking and messing up his words the least. And it had been a stupid idea. But when Alfred actually stood up to follow him and kissed him _again_ … Ivan wasn’t sure what to do.

Alfred was strong and clumsy as he gripped onto Ivan’s head to pull him close. Neither of them moved for a few seconds, both of them trying to grasp exactly what was happening. Alfred’s eyes were shut tight, but Ivan’s were wide open. From this close, he could clearly see some of Alfred’s freckles, could see some of the wrinkles on his face. Just as Alfred was about to pull back, however, Ivan closed his eyes and pressed forward, just a little bit.

It was enough to start…something. A fire seemed to have been ignited in Ivan’s stomach as he started to move his lips with Alfred, who complied extremely easily with him. Ivan’s hands hesitantly moved to Alfred’s hips, waiting for an indication of rejection. But Alfred kept going, his hands gripping tightly onto Ivan’s hair. Alfred was actually the first to press his tongue to Ivan’s lips.

Ivan eagerly accepted the intrusion as he allowed his hands to roam. At first, he moved towards Alfred’s ass but the pants material was a bit too thick for his liking. Ivan carefully placed his fingers on the skin underneath Alfred’s shirt and he pulled back from the kiss, just a breath away from Alfred’s lips.

“How far are you willing to go?” Ivan asked carefully. Alfred was only 18, after all. Ivan had to pace himself, see how far Alfred was willing to go before he pressed any limits.

“We’re about to find out,” Alfred said breathlessly. Seeing his face like that, flushed and needy and with his pupils dilated so much… Ivan lurched forward to connect their lips again, this time the first one to move his tongue, which Alfred accepted, mingling his own tongue as well. Ivan carefully started moving his hands up Alfred’s chest, moving slowly just in case Alfred didn’t want something. He gave Alfred plenty of opportunity to pull back and say no before he moved on, going from his abs, to his chest, his fingertips grazing over Alfred’s nipples. Alfred gasped a bit at that, but continued the kiss. In fact, Alfred’s hands started to rove as well, but over Ivan’s shirt, never under it.

Ivan moved to Alfred’s back, feeling over his shoulder blades and tracing over his sides. Alfred giggled a bit at that, squirming under Ivan’s touch. Ivan smiled into the kiss. Alfred was ticklish; he would save that bit of info for later. As Ivan slowly moved down Alfred’s back, however, he noticed Alfred get a little hesitant with his movements. Ivan stopped before he even reached the waistline of Alfred’s pants. He pulled back.

“Too much?” Ivan asked. Alfred nodded slowly. He looked almost…ashamed. Ivan smiled softly, moving his hands onto Alfred’s shoulders. “It’s okay, I understand. If I felt uncomfortable, I would want you to stop as well.”

“You sure you don’t mind?” Alfred asked hesitantly. Ivan chuckled, giving Alfred a little peck. He felt so relieved that Alfred had actually kissed him back. It was so…nice. Finally, something positive surrounded by all of his mistakes.

“Besides,” Ivan said simply, “I would hate for us to get to involved and something happen to make your nose even worse.”

“Hey,” Alfred whined. “My nose is just fine.”

“Of course, darling.” Ivan chuckled. Alfred rolled his eyes.

“But…really. You really mean this?” Alfred asked. “You don’t have to, like, appease me or anything just because I had that crush on you.”

“I do mean this,” Ivan said. “You are the first person to make me laugh or even smile like this for a long time. And…being around you makes me feel…happy. Whole. I…do not know how to explain it. And if I will only know you for a few days or weeks, even…I would like to make the most of this opportunity and not waste my chances.”

“Yeah, yeah, okay,” Alfred said, nodding slowly. He was still a little out of breath from the kiss and he seemed to notice this with a small giggle. “Wow, you know, I’ll be honest, I’ve never done something like this before.”

“Like, with another man?” Ivan asked curiously. He himself was not new to the scene, but he had a few years of experience ahead of Alfred…

“No, like with anyone,” Alfred admitted with a blush, looking down at Ivan’s chest, which was still very close to him. “I’ve, uh, never dated before. I know, that’s really lame and all that, but, uh…”

Ivan hummed. “Not lame. Just…selective. I find it an honor that I am the first one.”

“Even in a fictional world where you may not even be real?” Alfred asked with a smirk.

“You are the one that may not be real,” Ivan offered. Alfred laughed, but they didn’t move from their position. Ivan thought for a moment. He honestly hadn’t thought he would get this far. He wasn’t sure what he should do now…Well, there was one thing that had been bugging him that he wanted to do… “I…I want to tell you about what happened with my former friends.”

“You don’t have to,” Alfred said. “I know how uncomfortable it makes you, you really don’t have to say anything.”

Ivan shook his head. “I want to, sunflower. You should…probably know about that part of my life before you try getting to close to me. Just in case.” Ivan carefully tucked a piece of hair behind Alfred’s ear. “Not now, but when we have time alone. After dinner, maybe. But you should know.”

“Okay,” Alfred said slowly. “But, Vanya…I know you’re a good guy and you feel bad for…whatever you did. It can’t be bad enough for me to change my mind about you.”

“Reserve that judgement for later,” Ivan suggested. “Come, we should sit back on the couch just in case she comes back. I do not think she would want us to move.”

“I’m sure we can find a few ways to entertain ourselves,” Alfred said happily, plopping back down onto the couch and patting right beside him. Ivan had barely managed to sit down before Alfred was leaning comfortably on him. It made him smile softly. He just hoped he could make this last…

* * *

They had spent a solid hour alone in that room playing any random guessing games that Alfred could think of. It seemed to amuse Ivan enough, so Alfred was happy as well. Then the rest of their day was spent with Natalia, occasionally talking, but of nothing really important. The only weird part came when she stopped everything suddenly and left the room again. The guards came in shortly after to bring them to dinner. They’d been talking through lunch and Alfred was starving.

Dinner had them absolutely alone again, aside from some guards, which was really weird and made Alfred feel a little uncomfortable. But it got them alone in their room again a lot sooner than Alfred thought they would be. Ivan didn’t seem very thrilled, he seemed really nervous. But Alfred took hold of his hand the second the door closed behind them, running his thumb over the back of it.

“You really don’t have to tell me if you don’t want me to,” Alfred said simply. He was already over the fucking moon that Ivan and him were…together? Dating? Was that what they were considered? Were they really boyfriends? Partners? Well, whatever, they were something and that was all that mattered. But Ivan seemed intent on the fact that Alfred would hate him after he knew the truth…

Ivan shook his head. “You should know.”

“Okay, then,” Alfred said, following Ivan to the bed, where they could both sit comfortably and still face each other.

Ivan took a deep breath after they had settled, apparently trying to figure out where to start. Alfred waited patiently, still not letting go of Ivan’s hand.

“I should start off with the fact that my father did not teach me how to make friends properly,” Ivan said slowly. “His way of showing love and affection was…knowing what’s best for me and making damn sure I knew when I did something wrong. My sisters knew how to make their own decisions just fine, apparently, but I needed…extra help. Regardless, that is no excuse. In high school, I made…friends. Real friends. Most people did not bother to get to know me as a child, so having friends was…interesting.

“It was Feliks first. He was kind enough to introduce me to his other friends, Toris, Eduard, and Ravis. They were also weirder people that did not have many friends, so it was a good experience for all of us. At first. I…started to get paranoid that they didn’t like me, that they never wanted me around. My father did not help anything, giving me suggestions to make sure that my friends could never leave me. Needless to say…I grew very manipulative. I did not allow them to go out with other friends. I was the only one that they could be with, ever. And if they did…I grew violent, with my words and my actions. I eventually roped my sisters into it as well. Eventually, Feliks attempted to make me stop and just…let them go. I lost my temper and I…”

Ivan stopped to take a deep breath and Alfred stayed quiet, but continued to rub the back of Ivan’s hand, in hopes of maybe calming him down. Ivan was shaking, trembling. It was a bit to take in, honestly, but it didn’t seem as bad as Ivan was letting on. Sure, he made a lot of mistakes with these people. And abusing his friends physically was never good… But Alfred honestly could have guessed that something like that would happen with him. Ivan had hit Alfred, though accidentally…Alfred was just trying to make excuses at this point, wasn’t he?

“I hospitalized him,” Ivan whispered and Alfred stared at him with wide eyes. There was no way he had actually done that. Ivan stayed quiet for a while, avoiding eye contact at all costs. His shaking had gotten worse.

“You don’t have to keep going if you don’t want to,” Alfred assured him in a quiet voice, almost afraid of shattering the mood around them. “You’ve told me more than enough.”

Ivan shook his head slowly. “No, no, I should finish.” He took a deep breath. “After that, I finally came to my senses. I had just finished high school and took that as my chance to distance myself as much as possible from my…friends. I went to a college that they would never go to and…put myself and my sisters into debt, seeing as my father would never give us any help with money. And, as you know, I’ve promised to never see them again, force them to be reminded of what I did to them.”

Alfred waited for a few seconds before he spoke again, still very careful.

“What about your dad now?” Alfred asked cautiously. “And, uh, if you don’t mind me asking, what about your mom?”

“My mother died when I was young,” Ivan admitted. “I have to admit that she is probably the only positive influence in my life, aside from my sisters. I just wish I took after her sooner. My father had a…fairly bad smoking habit, another thing I took after, and he would up getting cancer from it. Part of me hopes that he did not end up in the same place as my mother, for her sake.”

Alfred was honestly speechless, completely unsure about what to say. It was a lot more serious than he’d originally thought. But Ivan’s anxiety around them made sense. It was a reminder that he’d completely lost his cool and done something so terrible. Maybe even seeing Alfred’s broken nose was also a reminder of that…That he could still lose his cool and cause such major damage.

“I understand if that has changed your mind about me,” Ivan said, glancing up at Alfred but not looking at his face for long.

Alfred decided to take a chance, trusting that hopefully Ivan wouldn’t take offense to what he was trying now. “Have you even tried apologizing to them?”

Ivan looked back up at him in surprise. “You really aren’t…angry? Or afraid?”

“I’m not afraid of you,” Alfred said, shaking his head. “It’s obvious to me that you feel terrible about what you did. And you would never do something like that again. I trust you. But…Ivan, I need to know. Did you at least try to talk to them?”

“I…do not want to torture them more,” Ivan said quietly.

“Vanya,” Alfred said, carefully touching Ivan’s face, ready to stop if Ivan gave him any cue to stop. “I know where you’re coming from, but hear me out really quick. The people you hurt have gotten no closure. You just…disappeared. And I’m sure they’re happy not thinking about it, but they should at least know that you’re sorry. They don’t need to forgive you and…hell…I agree with you, they shouldn’t. But they need to know that you feel terrible about it. That you’ve changed and you’re not going to hurt anyone else.”

“Fedya,” Ivan said. “I am lucky enough that they decided not to charge me for any of the damage I caused because they were too terrified of me to even try to. If they even see me…Who knows what that could do to them. They’ve been hurt so much already. I could never hurt them again.”

“At least, consider it,” Alfred tried. “Please. I think it would be the right thing to do.”

“I have never been very good at doing the right thing,” Ivan said with a sad smile. “But I will think about it. I’m just…not sure if _I_ can handle seeing them again.”

“But you’ve already said it’s not about you,” Alfred said. “It’s about them. It might even make you hurt a little less. It’s at least some sense of closure, not just some part of your past you’re trying to forget. It might be better to shut the door on that part of your life.”

“Well, thank you for listening to me,” Ivan said, changing the subject. Alfred nodded, though, allowing it. Ivan had done more than his fair share of talking about this. “You really do not have to stay with me after knowing…”

“Technically, I’m stuck with you,” Alfred said simply, holding up their handcuffed hands. “But I’m more than happy to be your friend. And more, if that’s what you want. I promise, you really don’t scare me.”

“Thank you,” Ivan said again. He moved to kiss Alfred, stopping just before touching his lips. He was waiting for Alfred to move, just in case. Alfred didn’t hesitate to kiss him. It was a chaste kiss this time, nothing special, just sweet and short.

Ivan yawned as they separated and Alfred giggled.

“You want to sleep?” Alfred offered. “A lot of things happened today, you seem pretty tuckered out.”

“Well, thank you,” Ivan said with a small, real smile. Not quite as sad anymore. Or maybe sad wasn’t quite the right word… “I definitely could use a rest; from this world and ours.”

“And I would love to cuddle with my big, Russian bear!” Alfred chimed. “You look so comfy to sleep on, and, I mean, I have slept on you a few times, but not purposefully and that totally didn’t count as cuddling, you get me?”

“You are rambling,” Ivan said simply. Alfred blushed slightly, but they both moved to a position where they could sleep better, underneath the comforter. Alfred didn’t hesitate to curl up into Ivan, but made sure that Ivan could still lay comfortably. It was nice and warm…

“Sweet dreams, big guy,” Alfred said simply. Ivan smiled.

“Thank you,” Ivan muttered, almost unheard, but Alfred couldn’t help but smile as well at the sound. It was early as hell to be going to sleep, but being this warm and comfortable? They were both asleep within minutes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fucking finally, right guys? They had their kiss and sort of an admission of love? Not quite, but that’s coming later, swearsies! And we finally get to know about what Ivan did, since it’s been alluded to for ages. But, yeah, very exciting. Next chapter even more exciting things are gonna happen, so look out for that fun shit!
> 
> See you then!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings for this chapter:
> 
> Explicit mentions of death and brief descriptions of blood and gore.

Alfred slowly opened his eyes as a morning light filtered in the room. It was so much easier to wake up with actual light in the room. He sighed happily, taking note of how warm and comfortable he was. Once his eyes sort of focused, he found himself staring into Ivan’s collarbone and smiled slightly at it. Actually being allowed to be this close to him without having to be embarrassed was so freaking nice. And being this close made it even easier to calm Ivan down after his nightmare, too. They barely had to move…

“Do you always sleep in this much?” Ivan asked with a small chuckle. Alfred found himself blushing, but glared up at Ivan anyway.

“I’m sorry, not everyone can wake up early and creepily stare at people,” Alfred said pointedly. Ivan laughed before placing a kiss onto Alfred’s forehead.

“You look so adorable when you blush,” Ivan said happily. Alfred’s blush grew even worse and he lightly punched Ivan’s chest.

“Fight me,” Alfred muttered under his breath.

“If you are so eager to lose, I would be more than happy to,” Ivan offered. Alfred punched him harder this time and Ivan grunted, chuckling slightly. “No need to be so violent, Fedya, I am just teasing.”

“You’re always just teasing,” Alfred said simply. He moved forward to kiss Ivan on the lips, happily enjoying the feeling of Ivan kissing him back. “I’m never going to get tired of this,” Alfred said with a small smile as he pulled back. He never knew how nice it would be to actually kiss Ivan, to actually hold him this close. Sure, he had some ideas after he started developing that crush, but nothing in his imagination lived up to this. It just felt…right.

He tried to ignore the pit in his stomach that came from thinking about the day where they would finally be separated again.

“Hey, I’ve got an idea,” Alfred said and Ivan raised a brow. “There’s a chance that we really could be from the same world, right? The same Earth and everything. And when we get out of this…there is a chance we could see each other again, right?”

“Perhaps,” Ivan mused. “I’m willing to entertain the thought.”

“Perfect,” Alfred said happily. “You already know I live in D.C., but I can give you my school or something. My neighborhood, to make it easier. And you can do the same.”

“Are you sure you can manage a trip to Russia?” Ivan asked curiously and Alfred pouted at the slight condescending tone of his voice. “I mean no offense, my darling. I just mean that, not only do you not know Russian, if my assumption is correct, but you are also still in high school. Can you afford a trip?”

“Well, can you?” Alfred asked. Sure, he probably couldn’t and his parents definitely wouldn’t let him just go to Russia on a whim for a weekend. And he really didn’t know any Russian…Why was this so hard?

“Maybe,” Ivan said. “It would be tight…but I would definitely consider it.”

“For someone you’ve known for a few days?” Alfred asked. Thinking of this plan a bit more realistically, Alfred was slowly realizing how stupid it was.

“I really do care about you,” Ivan said. “You know more about me than almost everyone I actually know, and you’re almost as close to me as my sisters. I would consider it. Would you?”

“Yeah,” Alfred said slowly. “Yeah, I would. I mean, you know about my superhero stunt when I was a kid and I made Mattie swear he’d never tell anyone. And you know a fair deal about me, too. I trust ya.” Ivan smiled happily at those words and moved to open his mouth, but the door opened behind them, ruining the moment.

“Both of you,” Natalia said coldly, “get up. We’re going for a walk.”

“This early in the morning?” Alfred groaned, turning over to look at Natalia, who simply nodded and turned back to the door.

“Get up in a minute or I will drag both of you to our destination,” Natalia said, leaving the door open.

Alfred groaned, sitting upright before Ivan. “These people really don’t wanna give us a break, do they?”

“We can go along with it for now,” Ivan said. “I doubt they’ve discovered which Alices we are. We should be safe for a little longer.”

“God, I hope so.” Alfred sighed. They both stood up together and Alfred was honestly kind of nervous to go with Natalia. She had a plan in mind for them, maybe a way to find out which Alice was which and it made him extremely anxious. This was a bit more intense than sitting in a room and talking.

Natalia didn’t say a single word as they left the room. Alfred saw that Feliks, Toris, Eduard, and Ravis were all outside as well with no other soldiers in sight. Alfred and Ivan walked with them quietly, Alfred holding onto Ivan’s hand just in case. He couldn’t help but think about what Ivan had told him last night, Feliks especially giving him very vivid images in his mind.

It didn’t take long for them to leave the castle, walking out of the huge front doors. Alfred swallowed nervously as he followed, noticing a pretty big crowd of soldiers next to that cliff he had noticed earlier. Now that made him extremely nervous and he held onto Ivan’s hand tighter. Natalia approached the group, which moved aside for her easily. There was basically a path between the soldiers, straight to the edge of the cliff.

Alfred stiffened when he caught sight of the Queen, standing near the edge, but nowhere near close enough that she was in danger of falling off. Even though he tried to stop, however, the four behind them continued to move forward, almost pushing him with them. Ivan continued moving forward on his own, though hesitantly. Finally, they stopped with (thankfully) a few feet between them and the edge of the cliff. Alfred tried to glance over the edge and shuddered when he found that he couldn’t see the bottom.

“What, are you trying to threaten us again?” Alfred asked the Queen curiously, trying to stand tall in hopes of showing that he wasn’t intimidated. But he really, really was. This was a lot of soldiers and he wasn’t sure what they were going to do. What plan did they have in mind?

“We finally got news back from our spies,” the Queen chirped happily. “Of course we couldn’t let the Hatter have you all to himself without at least gathering my own information. From what we know, both of you are from a different world…and you know about…other versions of us, correct?”

Ivan narrowed his eyes in suspicion and Alfred started to get a little nervous. He could tell where this was going to go and it was making his breathing uneven. Alfred couldn’t help but hide a little bit behind Ivan, keeping his distance from the Queen. He knew it wouldn’t help much, but Ivan was probably stronger than her, if it came to that…

“Well, from what our spies found out,” the Queen continued. She was actually happy and it was honestly extremely creepy. Alfred was really uncomfortable with how things were going with this, “it seems that Alfred knew everyone in the Hatter’s close circle. And from what some of our soldiers have gathered from overhearing conversations, it seems that Ivan at least knows the names past our titles.”

“And this makes you assume you know which Alice is for you?” Ivan asked. Alfred knew clearly where this was heading and it made him very, very nervous. He really didn’t want to go through another near death experience if he could help it. Thankfully, the soldiers hadn’t moved.

“That is a factor,” the Queen said. “Another is how well I get along with both of you, along with some of the ideals that you two have. I’m afraid that other Alice is a bit more…free-spirited than I would like. And he’s startlingly like the Hatter and his ideals. Frankly, it’s very obvious which Alice is meant for who.”

“How can you be sure?” Ivan asked with narrowed eyes.

“Well, the only way to know for sure is to find out,” the Queen said simply. Now the soldiers were moving and Alfred flinched. He definitely could not fight against an entire army. A handful of people, sure, but a whole army? No way. “And if it turns out I was wrong, I can just get rid of you as well. The Queen will be just fine on her own, I think.”

“Let go of me!” Alfred shouted as he felt some of the soldiers hold onto him and move him away from Ivan. It took a good few more soldiers to keep Ivan still. They were moved just as far as the shackles would allow them. Alfred had never wanted to be at Ivan’s side as much as he did now. Was the Queen really going to kill him? How? Was he going to get shot? Stabbed? Beaten?

“I would prefer to use my ability,” the Queen mused as the soldiers kept moving. Alfred dug his heels into the ground, but that wasn’t doing much to halt their progress. His heart nearly stopped when he realized he was being pushed towards the edge of the cliff, “but I find that this way is pretty clean as well. Very quick, assures a death, and there’s no clean up involved this way.”

“You’re seriously gonna kill me,” Alfred said breathlessly. He let himself be dragged about a foot before he tried to fight even more, but these soldiers were seriously strong. “Hey, man, if you let me fall, Ivan’s gonna go with me!”

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing,” the Queen said happily and stepped back. Alfred looked at Ivan, who seemed to mirror his sense of panic. No, there was no way Alfred could go out like this. But there really was nothing he could do.

Before long, Alfred stumbled backwards and, when he stepped back, his foot didn’t hit the ground. His stomach plummeted as he felt himself falling backwards. His arm jolted him to a stop, seeing as he was connected to Ivan and he screamed as he felt his shoulder nearly explode in fire. He guessed it was probably dislocated… He was thankful for the first time just how tight those shackles were as he looked up. Ivan had apparently fallen to the ground, his arm connected to Alfred hanging over the edge of the cliff. The soldiers had let go, distancing themselves at least to the point that Alfred couldn’t see them.

“I-Ivan,” Alfred said shakily, looking at him in the eyes. Ivan was in the same blind panic at him. Alfred kicked out his legs, trying to find some way to get a hold of the cliff face in front of him. He made the mistake of looking down and nearly puked, looking back up at Ivan. It was a really, really far drop.

“I-I have you,” Ivan said simply. Alfred didn’t know how much he trusted that little chain between them, since this was apparently just a part of the Queen’s plan. “Just…just…hold onto the chain first.” Alfred nodded, taking orders easily. He gripped onto the chain and sighed with relief at the small reprieve of pain on his wrist and shoulder. “I’m going to pull you up quickly.” Alfred nodded, trying to see if he could gain some footing to make Ivan’s job easier. He couldn’t reach anything, but Ivan was starting to pull him up. Soon, Ivan had his feet under him and Alfred flinched, looking down once again.

“Please hurry,” Alfred mumbled.

“You know, this scene gets a little boring after a while,” the Queen mused and Alfred stopped his struggling. Why was she doing it this way? This was…torturously slow and terrifying. Alfred didn’t want to drop. He didn’t want to die. “I know how to fix this. Off with its head.”

Alfred glanced down at the chain and watched in horror as it broke in half. So she could also use her abilities on objects, not just people… Alfred didn’t even think to scream as he started to fall.

* * *

“Off with its head.”

The chain snapped and Ivan stumbled backwards now that there was no weight for him to pull. He sat in horror for maybe a second before he scrambled forwards.

“Alfred!” Ivan shouted and he didn’t even notice what he was doing until he noticed that the soldiers grabbing onto him were preventing him from…from… _going over the edge_. Ivan blinked before he stopped fighting. He couldn’t even see Alfred anymore, hadn’t even heard him scream.

He felt a numb, hollow feeling wash over him as the soldiers pulled him back. His legs wouldn’t even work and he fell onto the grass underneath him, staring at noting. Feeling nothing. Alfred was gone. Dead. And he could do nothing to save him.

“Now, let’s get back to the castle,” the Queen said simply, walking past him with a happy air. “You two, go and make sure he’s dead.” Ivan knew he should have been angry. She had Alfred killed. She was going around with Katyusha’s face and committing such cruel acts. Ivan should have been angry.

But he couldn’t bring himself to feel anything. He’d been stupid enough to feel so much for Alfred, trust Alfred so much. And it was taken away so easily… Alfred was taken away so easily.

“Oh, please do wake up, Alice,” the Queen said and Ivan only just noticed that she was standing in front of him. His head moved to look up at her. “I’m going to need your help keeping control of my kingdom.”

Ivan stared up at her for a while. Honestly, he wasn’t sure how much time passed while he sat there. She eventually moved away, but it was only after that when Ivan fully processed her words. He was the only Alice in this world now…

“Stand up,” Natalia’s voice said and Ivan stared in that direction for a while until he properly saw Natalia in front of him. It took another few seconds to process the words. His legs moved for him and, soon, they were walking for him back to the castle. They’d come outside just for this occasion and nothing else. The Queen just wanted to show her power, show that she was the one in control.

And it had worked. They had let it work. And now Alfred was…

Ivan hadn’t even noticed that he’d allowed himself to be led back to the throne room, where the Queen sat on the throne happily looking at him. Ivan had nothing to say, nothing to offer. He felt…absolutely nothing as he stood silently. Everything that he’d actually cared about in this world was just easily taken away from him. What would happen when he left this crazy place? Would Alfred still be alive in that world? He hadn’t told Ivan any specifics about where he lived…would it even be worth it to try looking for him? Was he really…completely…dead?

“Now that we have all of those formalities out of the way,” the Queen said simply, “we can finally get around to our plans for you.” She continued to talk, but Ivan didn’t bother listening to her. He couldn’t bring himself to care, honestly. Most of his motivation for making it through this world came from trying to survive…and then it came to Alfred, who had a very fierce will to live. But now…? Ivan had almost jumped off that cliff after him…

“Do you have any questions?” the Queen asked, bringing at last some of Ivan’s attention back to her. Ivan knew he had to make some kind of decision. On one hand, he could fight against the Queen and quite possibly get killed. A very viable option. On the other…he could just give up and go along with her. Maybe he really was her Alice, maybe his job was to ‘prevent all that is cruel.’ And it required the least amount of effort, he didn’t need to care, just go along with everything.

He took a deep breath. “I just have one. Do you have anything I can smoke?”

* * *

Arthur sighed heavily, massaging his temples as he slumped over his desk. There was so much to worry about and there was no possible way they were going to get to the Alices now, with the Queen’s bloody guard crawling all over that castle. They would just have to be patient and wait for an opportunity. But the Queen was way more willing to take risks than him. If only he’d been a bit more aggressive when the Alices were in his hands!

He shook his head, letting out a groan as he tried to focus on something he could actually do instead of moping around. There wasn’t a whole lot he could do. There was training of their ‘army’ or whatever they wanted to call it to make sure they could actually withstand and attack. There was making sure that the Door Mouse had enough materials for his projects and weapons that would hopefully help them. What they really needed was to get a hold of the Alices! He needed to make sure they had enough people close to the castle, just to make sure they can take advantage of any weak points.

The door opened and Arthur glanced up to glare at the intruder. It was just Francis. The Hare. His title was the Hare…

“What is it?” Arthur asked impatiently.

“The Queen is planning on making a move,” the Hare said quickly. He sounded like he’d been running. Arthur stood up curiously. “It was hard to get the news through, only one of our spies has made it out alive. She’s planning on making a move _today_.”

“What is she going to do?” Arthur asked, walking quickly towards Francis and out the door. “Does this have anything to do with the Alices? How could she possibly know which Alice is which?”

“I’m not sure,” Francis said, following him at the same pace. “We don’t have anyone close enough to intercept her or stop any of her plans. We’re short-handed enough as it is around here.”

Arthur nodded. They still stayed at Francis’ mansion, hoping to rebuild the town around it as quickly as they could. They’d lost a lot of good lives and Arthur was only useful when it came to battles or moving things around. He was virtually useless when it came to actually helping people. And now he was useless at doing his own job!

They barely made it out of the mansion when Arthur noticed the crowd just outside. What little soldiers that actually had guns were standing around a single soldier dressed in red. A Queen’s soldier. A messenger. Arthur noticed the two stamped onto his chest and sighed. This man was expendable, the Queen expected them to kill him.

“What news do you have to bring us?” Arthur asked the soldier calmly, but with enough authority to at least seem intimidating.

The soldier was brave, Arthur would give him that. He stood straight and tall and talked with a very clear voice. Made it perfectly clear every word of the message. “The Queen has found her Alice and by this time, yours will be dead.”

“Say that again?” Arthur asked simply, making sure to use his magic so that the soldier couldn’t move and knew it very, very well.

“Your Alice is dead,” the soldier said clearly. Arthur took a deep breath. The soldier wasn’t saying names, so even he didn’t know. Arthur could only guess which Alice had actually been his…now he needed to try a new angle, and without an Alice, too…

“I don’t care what you do with him,” Arthur said, addressing his own ‘army’. “Francis, with me. And someone get Tweedle Dee and Dum!” Arthur turned back towards the house, Francis following him close behind. They couldn’t just sit around anymore. The Queen was bound to attack soon, which meant they needed to move, too.

“You called me by my name,” Francis said and Arthur stopped walking suddenly, causing Francis to run into him.

“Now is not the time,” Arthur said simply, glancing back at him. Francis nodded slowly.

“I understand,” Francis said. “What is your plan now?”

“We act quickly, before she can,” Arthur said. “It’s the only chance we have.”

“I trust you, Hatter.” Francis nodded. Arthur nodded as well and decided to do something really, really stupid.

“Arthur.” With that, he continued walking, taking notice of how long it took Francis to catch back up with him. If they were most likely going to die at the hands of the Queen’s army, the least he could do is start taking some risks.

* * *

“I can’t fucking believe she was this quick!”

“We might be able to make it in time.”

“Speed up!”

Gilbert panted as he ran as quickly as he could. The forest was annoying to deal with on a normal basis, but it seemed to always know when he was impatient and in a rush. That damn messenger had taken his sweet ass time to get through the forest and Gilbert had barely been able to get the message in time. It was still early in the day, if he was lucky, he could stop her. She didn’t know what she was doing, trying to kill one of the Alices. They need both of them for any part of the prophecy to work!

Gilbert flinched when he managed to finally appear outside of the forest, Ludwig appearing beside him. He had no time to look around before he started moving again. In a second, he appeared again just in front of the castle. There was a crowd by the cliff’s edge and Gilbert had a terrible feeling about this. Before he could move again, try to break it up, he saw the Queen make her way through the crowd and head back to the castle, barely even bothering to look around. Gilbert was barely able to see that Ivan was safe and alive before he ran towards the edge of the cliff.

He disappeared long before reaching the soldiers and reappeared at the bottom of the cliff, Ludwig appearing shortly afterwards. Gilbert looked around as quickly as he could before he saw something just a short distance away. He teleported as close to the thing as possible and winced once he got a good sight of it.

It was Alfred…but it wasn’t anymore. It looked like he’d fallen on his right side, his arm and leg broken and horrifically twisted. There was…a lot of blood still oozing out of his smashed head. His eyes were still wide open, every part of his body relaxed and limp. It was too late.

“Dammit,” Gilbert muttered, looking away from the corpse as Ludwig caught up with him. It was Gilbert’s job to make sure that stupid prophecy came true and he had failed this badly? He couldn’t fucking believe it…

“What about the pond?” Ludwig asked carefully and Gilbert whipped around to glare at him.

“We can’t just use that,” Gilbert protested. “Especially not for someone not even from this world.”

“You did it for me,” Ludwig said and Gilbert glared at him for a short while before glancing at Alfred.

“We’re not even sure it can handle this kind of damage,” Gilbert said. “And that would be a lot of wasted time if it doesn’t work. Hell, the Queen can do a lot in the time it will take for it to work.”

“I think it’s worth the risk,” Ludwig said firmly. Gilbert rolled his eyes. He could hear the soldiers the Queen had sent to check on the corpse and clenched his jaw. He had to make a decision fast. As the Cat, it would be his first decision since gaining his title. He needed to make a good one…

“I have a plan,” Gilbert said. “Let’s get back for a while. Follow my lead.”

“Are you going to bring him back to the forest?” Ludwig asked, obviously not moving until he got his answer.

“Yes, _we_ are,” Gilbert said pointedly. He nodded backwards and he and Ludwig teleported together quite a few feet, enough that the soldiers wouldn’t immediately see them. Gilbert waited patiently as they approached Alfred’s corpse, checking him over for any signs of life. He stayed still until both of the soldiers started to try to pick up Alfred’s body, no doubt under orders.

Then he moved forwards, only running towards them, mostly just to save his own energy. He had to put on an act for this one at least. Well, he was already pissed off beyond belief, but the target of his anger wasn’t even nearby. She was safe in her stupid castle.

“What the fuck did you just do?!” Gilbert shouted at them. The soldiers looked at him in surprise and it was a wonder they didn’t recognize him sooner. Gilbert had only really been in the public until he was about 10, before he ran into the forest alone. No one really knew how to treat the Cat, anyway, they were all so afraid and unsure of what to do around him. But it was common knowledge that the Cat of this generation was albino and, regardless, the Cat had ears unlike anyone else in the world. The only exception being Ludwig, but that was a technical exception.

The guards backed up cautiously. Gilbert nearly laughed. Apparently he was scarier than the Queen, which was always a plus.

“You killed him,” Gilbert said clearly. He teleported between the guards and Alfred’s body. The soldiers nearly tripped over themselves as they ran away and Gilbert sighed heavily, looking back at Alfred. Now the Queen would know that the Cat knew about his death. Everyone would know about his death, and that could be to their advantage.

“Let’s get him to the pond,” Ludwig said, carefully taking hold of Alfred’s mostly intact arm. Gilbert grimaced but held onto Alfred’s other arm. Something moved around, but he tried to ignore it.

“Let me take the lead,” Gilbert said. “Just keep hold of him, don’t try to teleport or we could do even more damage.” Ludwig nodded and Gilbert took a deep breath. It took a lot of effort to teleport just one thing with him, but two people?

The first jump got them to the top of the cliff and, thankfully, no one was around to spot them. From there, Gilbert could see the forest and teleported there as quickly as he could, panting once they reached the cover of the trees. Now came the hard part of trying to find the stupid pond in this stupid forest. He just hoped it would be nice to him. Gilbert teleported once, looking around at where they wound up. Sure, he was one of the few people that could actually traverse this stupid forest, but that didn’t mean it was easy, and teleporting only made it worse.

He tried again and sighed with relief when they appeared just in front of the pond, the bright blue waters staring up at them. They didn’t even say another word before carefully lowering Alfred into the pond. It was big enough to fit maybe three people, so there was more than enough space for him. Gilbert sighed when he realized that Alfred wasn’t bleeding anymore, only a little bit of blood floating in the pond.

He looked at Ludwig, who looked at him expectantly. Gilbert rolled his eyes, pulling out the knife he had sheathed at his waist. Ludwig was right, Alfred couldn’t die and especially not on Gilbert’s watch. He placed the knife on the palm of his hand.

“This was my idea, I can do this,” Ludwig interjected.

“Yeah, but think about it for a second,” Gilbert said simply. “Not only do you have mixed blood that could mess something up, but we’re also not a hundred percent sure how this thing works. So far, we know that my blood worked on you.”

“There’s a chance it couldn’t work on him,” Ludwig pressed.

“Hey, this was your idea,” Gilbert said. “We’re dealing with the consequences if this doesn’t work, but we’re gonna give it our damn best shot. We’re doing my blood just in case.”

“And the side-effects?” Ludwig asked. “He already has one title.”

“There’s a first time for everything,” Gilbert said. The blade of the knife dug into his palm and he hissed at the pain, but it wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle. “First time for two Cats, first time for two Alices. How about our first Alice Cat? Sounds like a fun time.” Gilbert placed his bleeding hand into the water and winced as he felt the blood get _pulled_ out of him. This stupid pond had some kind of magic in it and Gilbert had found out how it actually worked on accident. He still didn’t know the technicalities of it, but he knew that it could use his blood to give Alfred more, keep him alive. And it could heal him.

He still wasn’t sure if it could bring the kid back to life. He knew it could heal someone _near death_ , but Alfred was definitely gone. He was just…floating in the pond, definitely not breathing. Gilbert’s blood slowly started to pool around him and Gilbert finally pulled his hand back after he started feeling a little light-headed. He wasn’t sure how much blood it had taken, but it sure felt like a lot.

“What now?” Ludwig asked curiously.

“Now, we take a step back, and we wait,” Gilbert said carefully, taking his own advice. He knew from experience what would happen once this guy regained consciousness. If he did gain consciousness… First, the blood had to get back into his system and his body needed to repair itself.

They would just have to wait for him to start breathing again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooookay, finally this happened. Not extremely happy with how it came out but it came out! The Queen did her own little power play and lots of big plot points happened. Some people already knew who the Cats were, not really a big secret, but they’re finally revealed. But, yeah, things happened and Alfred’s technically dead. But who knows, maybe it won’t last forever! You’ll just have to stick around to find out!
> 
> See you next time.


	12. Chapter 12

Gilbert yawned, tossing another rock into the pond. He glanced at Alfred, who still hadn’t moved. He was just…floating there. It had been days. But the pond was at least doing something. The blood was gone, at least. Even from his clothes. So it was at least doing something. But days without an Alice? Who knew what would happen to this world…And with the Queen all high and mighty now? Gilbert was damn near afraid to leave the forest. At least he was safe there. Ludwig was safe…

He groaned, running a hand through his hair. There really was nothing else to do. At least normally he could hop around, check up on everyone and see how they were doing. Especially that little mouse he’d saved a while back… But now? He had to babysit a corpse so he could hopefully fix this stupid world.

“I’ve found some berries,” Ludwig said after appearing suddenly at Gilbert’s side. Gilbert sighed, holding out his hand expectantly. Normally, they could get some more, but it wasn’t like Gilbert was very hungry in the first place. Looking at a dead body for about a week could do that to anyone. “How much longer until he’s…better?”

“I don’t know,” Gilbert admitted, eating some of the berries. They were pretty good. Ludwig learned quickly which berries were poisonous here. Usually, the forest didn’t want to kill them, but there were just some days…

“Should we check on the outside?” Ludwig offered.

“I…kind of don’t want to,” Gilbert said simply. It was quiet and he looked back at Ludwig, flinching slightly at the glare he received. “Hey, hey, keep your pants on. I’m just saying…it’s probably worse than we can fix. You know, without him.”

“What do you think we’re going to do with him?” Ludwig asked. Gilbert shrugged, looking back at the water. “We both watched him and we both know he doesn’t know what he’s doing. What will putting him back into the game really do?”

“Then what do you want us to do?” Gilbert asked with an exasperated sigh.

“I think it’s stupid how much you people with big titles rely so much on them,” Ludwig said. “All you do is hide behind them and expect your prophecy to do the work. But if you do nothing, then nothing will happen, prophecy or not.”

“I’m a Cat, I can’t _do_ anything,” Gilbert scoffed. “That’s kind of what’s implied in my title. I don’t get involved, I just…steer things in the right direction.”

“By that logic, you shouldn’t have saved me or the Door Mouse,” Ludwig said simply. “And by technicality you are not the only Cat in the world now. Rules are breaking and maybe you should acknowledge that.”

“Why am I getting lecture on this from you?” Gilbert asked, laughing slightly. Ludwig was right and he knew it. Hell, Gilbert was practically screaming at the Hatter to get off his ass and do something. Be more proactive like the Queen…They all needed to take a page from her book. She had no problems getting shit done. Then again, Ludwig had been pretty set in stone on the rules up until a little while ago…

“You need to do something,” Ludwig said. “Anything. An Alice will certainly help, but you need to do something, too.”

“He needs to start breathing before he can help,” Gilbert said simply.

But fate apparently decided it wanted to be a bitch right at that moment. They both froze when they heard a gasp of air behind them. Immediately, Gilbert whipped around to stare at Alfred, who was desperately gasping for air, his body flinching and writhing in pain. His eyes were screwed shut and Gilbert doubted he was conscious. He started screaming and thrashing, splashing the water everywhere.

“What do we do?” Ludwig asked.

“Nothing,” Gilbert said simply, not turning away from Alfred. Luckily, the pond was making it impossible for him to drown himself, but that didn’t stop him from getting antsy. “We have to wait.”

“He’s in pain!” Ludwig protested.

“He fell off of a cliff!” Gilbert snapped. “His bones are fixing themselves, his body is stitching itself back together. Of course he’s gonna be in fucking pain. He’s not gonna remember it.”

“Was I…?”

“Yes.” Gilbert nodded. It was hard to watch, almost impossible. And the screams were…horrific. “If you can’t stand to watch, you can leave. But I’m sticking around to make sure this goes as planned.”

Ludwig didn’t make a move to leave. Alfred didn’t seem like he was about to stop thrashing anytime soon.

* * *

It was a long night. Or was it day by now? Honestly, Gilbert couldn’t tell. It took hours for Alfred to calm down. But his body looked less…mangled now. And he was breathing. Who knew when he could actually regain consciousness. And, if he did, there was no guarantee that he would be the same kind of person he was before he died.

“Please wake up, kid,” Gilbert grumbled, staring at Alfred. He looked at lifeless as ever, aside from the slight movement that came from breathing. But there was nothing he could do to speed this up. Ludwig hadn’t lasted this long. He had spent maybe three days in the pond total. Alfred was getting on six now. It was dangerous to leave the rest of the world alone in the state it was in now, but they had no choice.

Gilbert glanced over at Ludwig, who was fast asleep on the ground. The second Alfred stopped screaming, he’d practically passed out. Gilbert yawned. If only he had that privilege. They took turns, sure, but Gilbert had barely slept during this whole thing. And he tried to make sure he was in charge of the body for as long as possible. He didn’t want to burden Ludwig with it…

Gilbert looked over Alfred’s face, which was back to its peaceful rest. He just looked like he was asleep, like nothing was wrong. He briefly wondered what the Alice could be dreaming of, if he was dreaming at all. What had death looked like to him? What did it feel like? Granted, Gilbert would never actually ask those questions…but he still wondered.

He leaned back, looking up at the trees and what he could vaguely see of the stars. He was used to the forest, sure, but it got damn boring after a while. There was only so many times that he could map the whole thing before getting bored out of his mind. Ludwig helped, sure, but during times like these…there was nothing he could do. It wasn’t like he could just leave Alfred and risk losing him by the time he woke up. There was no telling what his mental state would be like once he woke up. For Gilbert’s sake, he hoped he would come out of this okay in the end. That would make things go quicker and smoother.

* * *

It was dark. And cold. And…wet? Was this…what death felt like?

It took him a few minutes to figure out that his eyes were closed. He slowly opened them, wincing at the light. God, he hurt all over. It felt like he’d been ran over by, like, a million trucks at the same time. He groaned and tried to move, but his limbs were sluggish. Like he was floating in water. He blinked and looked down at the rest of his body.

He was…in water.

Okay, this was weird. He moved to sit upright but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Alfred groaned at the pain it caused and looked up at the person in question. It was a man. He was albino, so extremely pale, white hair, really weird red eyes. And he had…cat ears at the top of his head. Alfred closed his eyes. Great…just what he needed. He was still in that crazy world. His mind was a mess of things to remember, but he knew one thing for certain; being in this world was terrible for his health.

“I wouldn’t move if I were you,” the albino warned him. Alfred guessed this was one of the Cats he’d been hearing so much about. But why was he there? Why was the Cat talking to him while he laid in a pond?

Alfred moved to talk, but his throat erupted in pain and he tried to let out a cry, but only a little squeak came out, causing even more pain.

“And don’t talk,” the Cat said. “At least not for now.” Alfred stared up at him with a questioning look, hoping that at least sent a message. He had so many questions. How did he get here? What happened? Where was Ivan? Last Alfred could remember, there was some kind of confrontation outside of the castle with the Queen. Something that didn’t end well. And he knew he should have died or something…

“Let’s start off with the most jarring thing, I guess,” the Cat said with a heavy sigh. “You died. Sorry. The Queen pushed you off a cliff. Well, basically. Ludwig and I were able to take you with us, so you’re back in the forest.”

So he really did die. So…why, exactly, was he alive? He looked at the water he was in. It didn’t look all that magical, but you never really knew with this world… Wait, was this that pond he’d seen in the forest that one day?

“You’re going to be alright, but you can’t leave this pond until you’re fully healed,” the Cat said clearly.

“He’s awake?” a deep voice asked and Alfred tried to look around, but his neck throbbed the second he tried to move. Was that the other Cat?

“Stay over there for now,” the first Cat said, looking away from Alfred. “He only just woke up. Too much shit at once might overwhelm him.” Alfred inwardly groaned. He was being treated like a child. He could handle seeing two people… He might have died but he came back, he could handle this. How long was he out for, anyway? There was no way to ask in his current state.

The Cat looked down at him. Not with pity but with…something else. Was it stress? Anxiety? There was a little bit of sadness as well.

“You should rest, kid,” the Cat said. “You need to get your strength back as fast as possible.” Rest? How could he rest? He just fucking died! Ivan was alone with the Queen and who knew what that was doing to him mentally.

Ivan…

Ivan thought he was dead, didn’t he?

Alfred tried to sit up again, but a massive wave of pain crashed over his whole body and he cried out. The Cat had to push him down again, but Alfred fought against it. Ivan was alone and he thought Alfred was dead. The Queen thought that Ivan was her Alice, which meant that she would do anything to control him. Ivan already wasn’t in a stable mental place around his former friends. Alfred couldn’t just leave him alone!

“Listen to me!” the Cat shouted and Alfred looked up at him, stopping his struggling for now. His whole body was throbbing in pain worse than before. He couldn’t handle it, he had to stop. But Ivan… “You’re not gonna help anyone like this, you hear me? You probably can’t even fucking stand so pull yourself together!”

Alfred glared up at him.

“We should at least explain something to him,” the other Cat suggested. Alfred minutely nodded, hoping to get across his message. How long had he been out? How long had he left Ivan alone?

“Later,” the first Cat said simply, standing up. “So help me, kid, if you wind up hurting yourself even more, I’m not helping you again. You really want to help? Get back to your full strength and then get back to me. We don’t have any use for a dead Alice in this world anyway.”

* * *

It took a while and a lot of patience, but eventually Alfred fell asleep again. Gilbert was fucking exhausted. He couldn’t handle babysitting this stupid kid. That and he had no idea what he would do once Alfred was up and running again. What was his plan? Send him over to the Hatter and pray he does something good? It was obvious he had some kind of connection to the other Alice, he wouldn’t want to be separated from him. Gilbert didn’t even know how the other Alice was handling this whole thing. Just great.

“You should let him know,” Ludwig said simply. “He deserves to know at least how long he’s been asleep for, at least.”

“I don’t want him even more stressed out than he is now,” Gilbert said. “You saw him. He’d probably kill himself again if he tries to move too quickly. If he found out how long it’s been…”

“He’d be better off,” Ludwig pressed. “Is this really what you plan on doing? Hiding and waiting until he wakes up and then pushing him back out there? She’ll kill him again!”

“What do you want me to do?” Gilbert snapped.

“Fight,” Ludwig said. “You keep saying yourself that there is a first time for everything. You are worth more as a Cat than just waiting for the next prophecy and trying to figure out the meaning of this one. You know exactly what I wrong with this world.”

“It’s the job of the Alices to fix that,” Gilbert muttered.

“They can’t do it alone,” Ludwig said. “They’re not even from this world and they’re only two men. The Cat was referenced in that prophecy, which means you’re involved, whether you like it or not. Aren’t you tired of just doing nothing?”

“Do you really think I could even last in a fight?” Gilbert scoffed. “The Hatter has his magic, the Queen has hers. All I can do is teleport, okay? That’s it, nothing special. Nothing that gives me an edge.”

“Everyone is scared of the Cats,” Ludwig said. “You have that advantage and I can definitely think of a few ways teleporting can help in a fight. You are making excuses just to be lazy.”

“I’m already a useless Cat!” Gilbert protested. “I haven’t done anything except just keep up the name! Do you really want me to be the Cat that tried and failed? Do you know what that’s gonna do to this title?”

“It’s better than doing nothing and watching the prophecy go to waste,” Ludwig said. “Once this prophecy is done, isn’t it your job to receive the next one? Who is going to trust a prophecy from a Cat who never came out of hiding?”

“Who would trust a prophecy from a Cat who failed when he finally did come out?” Gilbert asked.

“Fine,” Ludwig scoffed, turning to walk into the forest. “I’m going for a walk.”

“Don’t get lost,” Gilbert said simply. Ludwig didn’t even respond as he left. Gilbert clenched his jaw.

They’d been fighting more and more recently, especially since the Alices got there. Gilbert didn’t have a plan for how to be useful. Hell, he planned on just hiding out and waiting until most of this blew over. But the Alices made him get involved. He was…scared. Just as scared as the fucking Hatter. He couldn’t fail and the easiest way to do that was to do nothing. Ludwig didn’t like that idea. But it wasn’t like he was full Cat to begin with. He couldn’t do much on his own.

Gilbert glanced at Alfred, who hadn’t so much as moved during that whole conversation. There really was nothing he could do on his own. Hell, being on his own was what got him killed. But that didn’t mean Gilbert had to get involved with all of that. He was a Cat. He observed and…pushed in the right direction.

He flicked a rock into the pond. But that really wasn’t enough anymore, was it? Just observing got them nowhere and everyone knew he wasn’t really pushing in the right direction. What could he even do? What was there to do?

“Dammit, Lud,” Gilbert grumbled as he stood up. Alfred would be fine on his own for a few minutes. Gilbert took a deep breath, knowing just where he wanted to teleport to. He couldn’t believe he was doing this…

Time to start planning.

* * *

Alfred groaned when he opened his eyes again. His whole body was in just as much pain as before, but he felt less drowsy. And his voice came out a little easier now, too. It was still as bright as before, but he only just now figured out how dark it really was. There was almost no light shining in through the tops of the trees. Just how long had he been sitting in darkness?

“Morning,” the Cat chimed above him and Alfred flinched slightly. “We can start with your rehabilitation today. Let’s start easy with some talking, how does that sound?” He was acting completely different from before…what had changed his mind?

“Fuck off,” Alfred said, his voice gravelly and broken. It set his throat on fire and he winced. His whole body felt like it was burning.

“Well, I see we have that squared away.” The Cat smirked. “It’ll still be a bit before we can get you moving. Be sure to tell me once the pain goes away.”

“What are y…” Alfred stopped to take a few breaths. Damn this was hard. The Cat was at least patient, waiting for him to speak. “Wh-what are you…” some more breaths. Dammit… “Planning?”

“A surprise,” the Cat said with a wink. “Getting a little tired of sitting on my ass and Ludwig won’t stop lecturing me unless I do something. So what the hell, I might as well play this game, too. Besides, I need to get back at the Queen for trying to fuck up the prophecy like that…”

Alfred wanted to say something, but he wasn’t sure what. His mind was a little sluggish and it took a while for his words to catch up with his thoughts.

Ivan. Right, he had to know about Ivan. What did Gilbert know about him? How was he doing?

“I-Ivan,” Alfred said breathlessly. “How…How is…he?”

“I don’t know,” the Cat said simply. Alfred frowned. “I haven’t exactly had the time to slink around trying to see what’s up outside the forest. Watching you, thinking of plans…”

So there was no way for Alfred to know what was happening on the outside? He had to find out how Ivan was doing. He had to tell him that he was okay. Ivan thought Alfred was dead.

“Relax, kid,” the Cat said. “We’re gonna find out soon. For now, keep resting. We still have a few details to iron out in this plan. You’ll be back to moving soon, I swear.”

Alfred was feeling a little tired already. Who knew coming back from the dead could be this tiring? He just hoped that the aching in his limbs could go away and soon. He just wanted to forget what all of this felt like. Hell, he just wanted to get back to the real world and not have to deal with all of this bullshit. He missed when his biggest worry was finishing a stupid history paper on time.

He fell asleep before he even noticed what was happening.

* * *

“So, do you think you’re ready to try standing today?” the Cat asked with a bright smile. This time, he was standing at Alfred’s feet. Alfred had woken up a couple of times intermittently, but never stayed up for long. Sure, he was up longer each time, but it wasn’t a big margin. But being offered to stand? Standing meant he was getting closer to walking, which meant he was closer to finding out what was going on with Ivan. And how to help him.

“Sure.” Alfred nodded and the Cat offered a hand, kneeling down. Alfred raised his hand, moving to sit up as best he could. His body felt heavy outside of the water. It was uncomfortable, but he could handle it. When he held onto the Cat’s hand, his fingers were clumsy and it took him a second to figure out how to get the grip right.

“You don’t need to move faster than you’re capable of,” the Cat said simply. He wasn’t just messing with him or trying to be funny. He was serious.

Alfred shook his head. “I want to get through with this fast.”

“Fine by me,” the Cat said before pulling. It gave Alfred enough leverage to put his feet under him, but that was about all he could do. The pond was fairly shallow and it enabled him to touch the ground, but his legs were shaky and couldn’t support his weight. The Cat was the one holding him up. But that didn’t stop him.

Before long, Alfred was standing upright, the Cat holding him up by his arms. Alfred’s whole body throbbed in pain and he felt like he was about to fall over at any second. What the hell was with this? How long had he really been dead for to make his body act like this?

“Still think this is a good idea?” the Cat asked. “Granted, standing is a big accomplishment, considering where we started. Who needs baby steps, am I right? Standing up in increments is for losers.”

“I think I should sit down,” Alfred admitted. His lungs were having trouble getting him air and he was starting to feel a little lightheaded. The Cat didn’t even hesitate to help him into a sitting position in the pond, all the while being careful not to touch it. Alfred was starting to feel tired again, but he refused to just fall asleep again. He needed to make better progress faster.

“Rest might be a good idea,” the Cat suggested. “I mean, there’s no use in tiring yourself out or hurting anything.”

Alfred had to think of something to keep him awake. And the Cat wasn’t about to tell him about the outside world so…

“Where’s this other Cat I’ve been hearing about?” Alfred said. Words were coming smoother now and his brain was working more or less as fast as it was before. Mentally…he felt alright. Sure, he was getting a lot of anxiety from sitting around with nothing to do but remember his own death and knowing that Ivan was alone…But he was doing alright otherwise.

“Lud is out working on plans,” the Cat explained. “He’ll be back soon, I guess. We’ve had some pretty damn perfect timing. He’s just never around when you’re awake, but oh well. Shit happens. You got any other questions?”

He was good at evading questions, never lasting on one for long. It was like he was trying to hide something. But this was different from most questions. When Alfred asked about the outside world, all he got was that the Cat didn’t know because he wasn’t going outside the forest. But this was clear evasion. The Cat didn’t want him seeing this Ludwig person for some reason. From what Alfred knew, almost no one had seen the Cats in the first place. Alfred didn’t even have clear descriptions of them to go off of, just that there were two, which was abnormal, apparently.

“How did you save me?” Alfred asked. He was starting to nod off, but he at least wanted to stay awake a little longer.

“I already told you, that pond,” the Cat said simply. “It’s magic or whatever the hell. I don’t get it.”

“And that’s it?” Alfred asked. “You just dumped me in this pond and hoped I would get better?”

“Pretty much,” the Cat said simply. When Alfred just stared at him, knowing there was more, the Cat sighed. “Okay, I’ll admit, there’s a bit more to it than that. And I’ll tell ya. Just…not now, okay? Give it a bit more time, give us a chance to iron out this…crazy plan…and once you’re on your feet and ready to roll, we’ll tell you.”

“Why not now?” Alfred pressed.

“Because you’re tired and you don’t need to be distracted by this crazy plan,” the Cat said. “You’re nodding off, now’s not the time to just blurt something out like that.”

Alfred huffed. Well, then, he’d just have to get better faster. Then he’d find out and get back on track of fixing this stupid world. Then he’d get back home. And he’d find Ivan in the real world and they’d be happy. Without risking their lives every two seconds. Alfred would honestly love to have the threat of death as far away from him as possible.

“Fine,” Alfred said. “But that’s a promise and if you break it, I’m not going along with your stupid plan. Got it?”

“Don’t worry, you’ve made yourself clear,” the Cat nodded. “Now get some rest. You’ll need your strength as soon as possible, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Alfred said slowly. He made his way back into a lying position and, soon, he was drifting back into sleep, still surrounded by that stupid water.

* * *

Alfred was fucking determined to walk this time. Or at least stand on his own feet. He felt a bit stronger as he stood this time, still with the Cat’s help, though. He hated having to rely on someone else’s strength. The pond was definitely doing something, though, because this time, Alfred wasn’t getting lightheaded. In fact…he could actually put some weight on his feet. Not all of it, granted, but it was something. He almost laughed, he was so happy, but the one thing that put a damper on it all was the fact that the Cat was still necessary.

“Damn, you’re making quicker progress than I expected, kid,” the Cat said with a little smile. It was followed shortly by a yawn. Alfred tried to focus his eyes on the man in front of him. Was he tired and Alfred hadn’t noticed? “Don’t worry about me, I’ve got this covered.”

“Well, you keep telling me to sleep,” Alfred said pointedly. His legs were starting to hurt. “Help me down.” The Cat did as he said and soon Alfred was sitting down again. Thankfully, he wasn’t as tired this time. He was still healing, apparently. He almost wanted to know just how bad that fall was…but at the same time, he didn’t.

“I have things to do,” the Cat said clearly. “I don’t have time to sleep. You need to sleep to get better.”

“Stop treating me like I’m some kid with a cold,” Alfred muttered. He was sick and tired of this language being used against him. He got enough of it growing up, he didn’t need to be talked down to now. He just died, after all. It was a bigger deal than a fucking cold.

“Sorry,” the Cat admitted. “How about this? I’ll sleep better if you get some sleep. Faster you can stand without my help, the faster all of this shit is over. Better for the both of us, right?”

“And you’ll start answering questions then, right?” Alfred asked.

“By then, maybe I’ll know how to answer them,” the Cat said. He stood up, looking into the forest. “I’m gonna be back soon. So get some sleep. And don’t go anywhere.”

“You’re fucking hilarious,” Alfred said bluntly, watching curiously as the Cat started walking into the forest. Before he went far, however, he fucking disappeared. Alfred blinked, leaning forward, trying to see if he could find an explanation. Arthur had talked about how the Cat could make you forget reality…So either that was an illusion…or he just teleported. “Seriously cool…”

How come someone as lame as him got such a cool ability?

* * *

It had been fucking days of exhausting, embarrassing, infuriating attempts, but it was fucking worth it. Alfred smiled as he looked down at his feet, which were standing, on their own strength, on the grass. And he wasn’t tired This wasn’t the first time he’d done it, but this was certainly the first time he’d been able to confidently step out of that stupid pond on his own and he could take a few steps after that, too.

“Finally,” Alfred breathed.

“Look at you go, kid,” the Cat chimed happily, patting him lightly on the back. He still touched him like he was afraid Alfred was going to break. Again. “You’re going at this pretty fast.”

“No way am I getting back into that stupid pond,” Alfred said pointedly. He watched in awe as his clothes already dried off. They’d done this before and it made him a little confused, in all honesty, but it was magic. He wasn’t about to ask questions about shit like that in this world. His hand absently went to touch his nose, which he’d noticed long ago was healed. The bandage had fallen off somewhere, but it wasn’t like he needed it now anyway. There was no bruising, no pain…nothing. He was perfectly fine. Except for his eyesight, but he could get those glasses from Arthur eventually.

“Can’t make you do anything,” the Cat said with a shrug. “Join us on the ground tonight, I’m sure it’s way more comfortable.”

“I don’t even care,” Alfred said happily. “You try lying in that stupid pond for a fucking week.”

“Two, actually,” the Cat corrected him. Alfred blinked. Was he finally answering his questions? “It took you about a week to wake up, too.”

“A…A week?” Alfred asked shakily. Ivan had been alone for two whole weeks now? Alfred felt his breathing come more and more quickly. Ivan…alone… Alfred sat down on the grass as he tried to process this. Sure, he’d expected he’d been out of commission for a little while after he died and was…miraculously brought back to life. But…that long? Ivan thought Alfred was dead for this long? “I have to see him.”

“No, no, no, that is a very bad idea,” the Cat pressed. Alfred glared up at him. “The Queen thinks you’re dead. That’s the only thing we have going for us. We need everyone to still think you’re dead for this plan to work.”

“Well, then it’s a shit plan,” Alfred protested. “You think I’m just gonna go along with this?”

“You need to,” the Cat said. “I swear, Alfred, this is the one time I’m getting off my ass to do something and you’re not gonna mess it up for me.”

“Oh, of course, I should’ve fucking guessed,” Alfred said, rolling his eyes. “You’re just like the others. You only want to use me.”

“To save this world! Like that fucking prophecy said!”

“I don’t give a shit about your stupid prophecy,” Alfred said. “I’ve already died _twice_ for this fucked up world and you think I’m about to just sit around and let you guys use me _again_?”

“We all have to make sacrifices for our titles,” the Cat said.

“Sacrifices.” Alfred laughed. “Oh, yeah, sacrifices. Tell me about the last time you fucking died!”

“I’m the fucking reason you’re not still dead,” the Cat said pointedly. “And I’ve been helping you.”

“How fucking sweet,” Alfred scoffed. “Thanks.”

The Cat rolled his eyes, looking out into the forest. “You know what, fuck it. Don’t go anywhere. If you do, you probably will be killed again. You can’t handle yourself. I’ll be back.”

“Yeah, sure,” Alfred said, crossing his arms over his chest.

The Cat nodded before vanishing in front of him. That really stopped being cool after, like, the second time. Alfred groaned, falling onto his back as he glared up at the sky. Or what he could see of it, anyway. He should have guessed that the Cat only wanted to use him, just like everyone else. The second he heard about a plan, he should have been suspicious. These people never saw past their titles. Alfred was just an Alice to them and, apparently, an Alice was some awesome person with a ton of power that was meant to fix their world.

Well, Alfred didn’t know how to fix anything. Hell, he didn’t _want_ to fix anything! These people could deal with their problems on their own. Alfred just wanted to keep living and get back to his own damn world. He just wanted to make sure that Ivan was okay. But he was too damn weak to do anything like that. He couldn’t do anything useful, anything he wanted.

* * *

“We’re going to launch an attack,” Arthur said clearly to the group in his office. He’d called Francis, the Door Mouse, the Caterpillar, and Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum. They would be in charge of making sure all the preparations were in order. “We need to make sure everyone is trained and ready. We’ve gotten lucky these past few weeks with only a few attacks and nothing past the forest. It looks like the Cats might actually be on our side for now. We’ll be leaving in three days. Door Mouse, make sure everyone is supplied with plenty of weapons and bombs. Caterpillar, I need you to make preparations for the civilians being left behind. Make sure the soldiers standing guard have enough to last. Dee and Dum, see to the soldiers coming with us. See if their training is coming along at a good pace and that their morale is up.” Arthur took a deep breath. “You have your orders, now leave.”

“And what about me?” Francis asked as the other four left without another word.

“I need someone to talk to,” Arthur pleaded. He’d barely been sleeping and he’d been on his feet practically entire the two weeks Alfred had been dead. The Queen hadn’t hesitated to make her moves. She took full control of all the towns on her side of the forest. And the Hatter’s mansion was as good as demolished, a massive blow to Arthur had his title. Their troops needed training badly and Arthur had to see to it personally, not like it helped much…And when he did make it to his bed to sleep, he was full of anxiety, wondering when the Queen would show up and just kill them all. What they could possibly do against her highly trained soldiers.

“If I may, I think you should order yourself to sleep,” Francis offered with a small smile. “You’re far too tired to manage a fight against her.”

“I can’t,” Arthur said. “I don’t have the time.”

“Make it,” Francis said, placing a hand on Arthur’s shoulder carefully. “I’m your second in command for a reason, right? Let me take some of this pressure off of you. So far, you haven’t let me.”

“I…I can’t fail,” Arthur muttered, placing his head in his hands. “I’ve already lost an Alice. I can’t let this title fall like this, Francis.”

“You are not failing,” Francis said simply, kneeling by Arthur’s side and carefully taking hold of one of his hands, pulling it away from his face. Arthur was almost ashamed at the tears pricking at his eyes, but he didn’t dare let any of them fall. He couldn’t. “All considering, I would say that you are the best Hatter we’ve had.”

“And how would you know?” Arthur asked bluntly. “I’m the only one you’ve had.”

“Perhaps,” Francis said, tracing little lines across the palm of Arthur’s hand. “But I have a feeling. And I also have a feeling that you are overworking yourself and it’s not healthy.”

“What else am I supposed to do?” Arthur scoffed. “My Alice is dead. I need to work enough to make sure that he isn’t missed.”

“Let me help,” Francis said clearly. “That is what the March Hare is for, correct? I want to help you. I can take the extra work if you give it to me.”

“I trust you, Francis, I really do,” Arthur said, “but I don’t want to rope you or your title into this. What if we do fail?”

“Then all of the blame won’t be placed on you,” Francis offered, kissing Arthur’s knuckles before standing up. Arthur tried to ignore the blush that spread on his face because of that, turning his attention towards his desk. How had he allowed this to happen? He shouldn’t be getting close to anyone, especially now.

“I think,” Arthur said slowly, “I’m going to try getting some rest. Francis, if you would, please make sure that everything is going smoothly. I’ll…have more for you when I wake up.”

“Of course, Arthur,” Francis said simply.

It took Arthur until the door to the study closed to properly register what he was feeling after Francis said his _name_. Not a title…a name. Arthur had heard stories…of the civilians who would get to know people by their titles…and when they were…when they were close…they would use their names. The names their parents only knew. Hell, it wasn’t even limited to the civilians. Arthur had heard about the Caterpillar and the Door Mouse being close friends.

Could this mean that he and Francis were actually…getting close? No one got close to a big title like the Hatter. It was…unheard of. Well, a lot of things were unheard of. Two Cats were unheard of. Two Alices were unheard of.

Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad…

Arthur couldn’t fight back the smile that appeared on his face as he stood up to hopefully get a little rest. At the very least, he had plenty of privacy to work through these strange thoughts floating around in his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew, long chapter here. Lots had to happen with Alfred and Gilbert, but we got along alright. No Ivan in this chapter, but that’s fine. Plenty next time, I swear. On the bright side, the FrUK thing is coming along nicely. Now all we need is for Gilbert and Matthew to actually see each other again and maybe these pairings will actually work out. In any case, Alfred is still alive, swearsies! And, don’t worry, some of that mystery going on with Ludwig and stuff will be answered soon.
> 
> Also, I totally thought I uploaded this like freaking days ago so that's on me. And because of that, I'm actually ahead in chapters so you're getting two chapters today.
> 
> See you next time!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning:  
> Ivan is seriously not in a mentally good place right now, so dangerous coping mechanisms and mentions of self-harm are in this chapter.

This time, the person that came back wasn’t the Cat Alfred was used to, it was the other one. He appeared out of nowhere, with what looked like clothes in his hands. He looked at Alfred with surprise and Alfred had to hold back a glare. He’d been left alone to just stew on his anger, but this wasn’t the person to direct it at. He did calm down a bit, however, when he starting taking in this Cat’s appearance.

He didn’t look anything like the other Cat, which was a bit weird considering Alfred would have thought they would be brothers or at least related. He was blonde, and had blue eyes, and he was incredibly tall and muscular. But his ears…they were normal. They weren’t cat ears. Alfred furrowed his brow. That went against anything Alfred knew about this world.

“Gilbert didn’t tell me you were out,” the man said simply. He was awkward. Great. “Or awake.”

“Well, apparently, Gilbert doesn’t tell people a lot of things,” Alfred said, going back to lying down and staring up at the trees. There was a stretch of awkward quiet and the man slowly moved over to Alfred, sitting beside him. His posture was stiff, like he was uncomfortable. Alfred held back a laugh. “Don’t worry, man, I won’t bite or anything. I just died and came back to life, nothing weird.”

“What did Gilbert tell you?” the man asked.

“Well, nothing about you,” Alfred said simply. He’d prefer to not think about his conversation with Gilbert, at least not until that stupid Cat came back. “What’s your name?”

“Ludwig,” the man answered and Alfred nodded. Great, making small talk was fun… At least it was something to do.

“So…how come you don’t have the cat ears?” Alfred asked. “I mean, Gilbert’s got them, right? Aren’t you a Cat?”

Ludwig sighed, looking deep in thought. Apparently that question opened up a big can of worms. Interesting.

“I’m not sure if I should talk about it without Gilbert here,” Ludwig said stiffly and Alfred groaned.

“What, is he your mom or something?” Alfred asked impatiently. “Look, just give me something to do. I’ve been sitting in a fucking pond for a week…well, two weeks. I’m sure it’s an interesting story. I won’t tell Gilbert, promise.”

“It’s complicated,” Ludwig said.

“I apparently have plenty of time,” Alfred said.

“We don’t,” Ludwig said and Alfred raised a brow. “The Queen and the Hatter are making moves fast and we need to do something before something bad happens to this world. Losing an Alice did a lot more than we thought it would.”

“I’m not saying I agree to it,” Alfred said, propping himself up on his elbows as he looked at Ludwig carefully, “but what is this plan of yours? Why does everyone need to think I’m dead?”

“Because they need to think you’re a Cat,” Gilbert’s voice said before Ludwig had a chance to respond. Alfred glared at the Cat standing in front of them. Gilbert was holding what looked like a metal bat in his hand.

“What?” Alfred asked.

“I’ll tell you the plan once you agree to help us,” Gilbert said stubbornly. “I know you don’t like the idea, but we have to agree on something, alright?”

“I’m not going to be used again,” Alfred said.

“You want to get back home, right?” Gilbert asked. “Wherever that is? Look, the only way you or the other Alice are getting back where you came from is if you finish this prophecy. Then your job here is done. But if you sit here on your ass and let our world fall to shit, you’re gonna be stuck here with us forever. Is that what you want?”

“Well, no, but-” Alfred groaned, shaking his head. “I’m tired of hearing about plans and being used for target practice, alright? I want to get home as quickly as possible, I-I want to make sure Ivan’s okay…but this world’s screwed me over enough times.”

“You aren’t gonna get anything done if you sit on your ass all day,” Gilbert said, kneeling down and using the bat as support by putting one end of it on the ground. “And you’re not gonna be alone out there. You’ve got me and Ludwig, plus I’ll give you some weapons. Like this bat, for starters. You’re not gonna be used, alright? This plan’s to help everyone, including you and Ivan.”

Alfred looked at the bat. It looked like it could do some intense damage if it was swung with the right amount of leverage. And if the bat was only the start of things…he wouldn’t be defenseless anymore. He could use both of his hands freely. The only thing messing him up now was the lack of glasses.

“Tell me your plan,” Alfred said. If it meant he could at least see Ivan again, hopefully make sure he hasn’t gone too far without Alfred there…he could make a few sacrifices.

“First, there’s something I have to tell you that happened with reviving you,” Gilbert said. “It’s a bit complicated.” Alfred nodded. “It’s like when I first met Ludwig. He started out as a generic title, nothing special or big. But he was dying because of some accident. I knew that this pond had magical properties so I tried putting him in there but nothing was working. I tried experimenting with a lot of things, but he was dying fast. So, I decided, like an idiot, to try giving him my blood. And it worked. But there were some side-effects.”

“You mean you made him into a Cat?” Alfred asked curiously. Gilbert nodded.

“Not fully in title or looks,” Gilbert said. That did explain the ears… So Ludwig could teleport because he was given Gilbert’s blood? That’s kind of cool, actually. “But he has the Cat’s abilities. Not to their full strength, either, but still… When you fell, you lost a lot of blood, too. So I gave you some of my blood as well.”

“You made me a Cat, too?” Alfred asked bluntly and Gilbert winced, standing up, but leaving the bat to drop onto the ground. Did that mean Alfred could teleport? Wait, what did that mean for his Alice title? Was he still an Alice or was he technically a Cat?

“In a manner of speaking, yes,” Gilbert said, pacing a little bit. “You’re still an Alice, but you’re also part Cat. I don’t know how your teleportation is, but we have to hope it’s good for our plan to work.”

“And what, exactly, is your plan?” Alfred asked.

“We need you to be our third Cat,” Gilbert said. “Make it look like we have a lot of strength, and put everyone back in check. The Cats can take charge and, as long as everyone thinks you’re dead, no one will try to kill you very quickly. If the Queen knew you were alive, she’d try everything to make sure you stay dead. And I know the Hatter would do anything to bring you over to his side, he might even get violent. So we hide your face, make you into another Cat, and scare everyone into getting back under control.”

“So you want me to pull a Lone Ranger?” Alfred asked bluntly. Neither of the two seemed to understand his reference, but he just shrugged it off. “When will I see Ivan? When will he be able to know I’m alright?”

“He can’t know your alive until we’ve finished our job,” Gilbert urged. “We can do it quickly, it would take maybe a few weeks, and then you can reveal yourself.”

“A few weeks?” Alfred snapped. “Ivan already thinks I’ve been dead for two weeks and now you want him to go a month? Maybe more?”

“Ivan’s a big boy, he can handle himself,” Gilbert said.

Ivan wasn’t mentally stable enough to go on thinking that Alfred was dead for a month. Who knew what Alfred dying had already done to him! He might have reverted back to the way he acted with his old friends, he might be getting violent. Hell, he might have even tried seeing if he could join Alfred.

Alfred took a deep breath, closing his eyes. He had to think of something, a plan for the Alices. These people seemed to have no problems using Alfred and Ivan in whatever way they deemed fit…so what if the Alices started returning the favor? Alfred had to think of a way to make sure Ivan knew he was safe and to get Ivan to safety. Alfred had to think up a plan of his own. Pretend like he was going along with the Cats.

“Fine,” Alfred said. For now, until he could come up with a good enough plan, he would go along with Gilbert. But he didn’t have any intention of letting Ivan think Alfred was still dead for longer than another week. “You said I could maybe teleport? How does that work?”

* * *

Ivan took a long drag from the cigarette in his hand. It wasn’t quite a cigarette, but it was close. It had tobacco, something that at least felt like nicotine…it was perfect. It practically felt like he was breathing smoke instead of air, which he honestly wouldn’t mind. He stood behind the Queen’s throne, standing to her left while Natalia stood to her right. She was punishing some soldiers who had only killed 30 of the Hatter’s army in a fight. For now, she was just talking about the disappointment, but Ivan knew at least half of them would be dead by the time she finished.

Another drag. Maybe after this he could get another drink…that would be nice. He was starting to remember the shade of blue Alfred’s eyes were again, and he needed to keep that memory out of his head as much as possible. By whatever means necessary.

“Off with their heads,” the Queen said simply and all but five of the soldiers in front of them dropped to the ground with their own heads. “Clean up this mess and get back to work.” There wasn’t any room for argument, and there were no towels or cleaning supplies offered. The Queen stood, making her leave. Ivan walked in stride beside Natalia behind her as they left the room. “Ivan, I’ll need you to head out as soon as possible.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Ivan responded easily and the Queen nodded happily. He didn’t even bother asking anymore about these assignments. At first, they were tests from the Queen about his loyalty. She asked a few ridiculous tasks of him, cleaning something, cooking something, then came punishing a traitor before his head was taken off…finally came killing someone. Ivan had done everything, wondering if there was something he could do to make himself feel something again. But even killing someone didn’t seem to cause any emotion to rise, instead, it gave him a sharp reminder of the one person he’d failed to save. That night had resulted in a lot of drinking, probably too much drinking.

“I’ll need you to go to a town with some soldiers, whip them into shape,” the Queen said. “They’ve been a bit short on taxes and I need to make sure they stay in line.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Ivan said.

“You leave in a few minutes, go get what you need.”

Ivan left her side without another word. He flicked the butt of his cigarette onto the ground for someone else to worry about as he walked to his room. He let out a miserable cough, part of him hoping that he would run out of breath. He wasted no time in gathering a handful of cigarettes and his lighter, along with the little present the Queen had been kind enough to give him. They’d spent a whole week trying to figure out what kind of combat Ivan was good at. He didn’t like guns all that much and he was terrible with a sword. But then the Queen tried having him fight with blunt objects, like a club. As a gift for how well he did in that fight, she gave him a sturdy, old pipe. Ivan knew from experience just how much damage it could cause someone.

In a matter of an hour, Ivan was with the soldiers at the town, everyone running from them the second they caught sight of the red armor. Ivan never bothered with armor, part of him wondering if he might accidentally get shot or stabbed. He probably deserved it, anyway.

Ivan walked calmly as the soldiers lashed out at anyone close enough to reach. He was hardly of any use here, but the Queen had ordered it, so who was he to refuse? All of the Queen’s orders were carried out, no matter what. Ivan caught sight of a woman running away and scowled at the realization of the color of her eyes. It was a perfect match, a horrible reminder. Without even dropping the cigarette in his mouth, Ivan advanced on her, striking her down with the pipe easily. Her eyes were closed now, as they should be.

A few stones were thrown, leaving scratches across Ivan’s face. He turned to glare at the culprits, reaching for the gun he kept in his pants just in case. They were too far to hit with his pipe, but some bullets would do them some good. Sadly, they ran off before he had a chance to retaliate. Damn.

Ivan reached up to touch the scratches on his face, noting with distaste how he couldn’t feel the pain there. He should have felt something, but it all just felt so numb. He had half a mind to make the scratches worse, see if he could finally feel something then. But that was dangerous. If he let himself feel something, then…

_Alfred_

He would come back into his head and Ivan couldn’t handle that kind of pain. Feeling nothing was better than suffering. Better than remembering the blue of those eyes…the sound of that laugh. Ivan had been stupid enough to let himself smile with him, let himself care about him so much. Just to have him taken away.

_Alfred_

Ivan hissed, slamming the pipe into the nearest thing to him, which happened to be a building. The wood splintered around the harsh crack he’d created in the wood and he growled, hitting the building again. He hit it again and again, until all he could feel was the chafing of his hand on the metal and his arm growing weak. He took a few deep breaths, staring at the hole in the wall now.

He couldn’t let himself think.

* * *

One day was all it took. Just one day to figure out this teleportation thing. It felt weird at first, for sure. Alfred laughed at the strange feeling that pooled in his gut the first time he did it. And he had only made it, like an inch over. But after a whole day of exhausting practice, Alfred had been all over the forest, only to figure out how to make it back to the stupid pond. Gilbert and Ludwig were helpful, of course, giving tips and tricks. But teleporting was fun. Being a Cat certainly had its perks. And now Alfred wasn’t defenseless against the big titles of this world. He had his own magic against them now and he could fight back.

“So, this is what’s supposed to hide my identity?” Alfred asked curiously, looking over the clothes that Ludwig had brought back. Alfred’s clothes were easily recognizable, apparently, so these were the only things he could really wear. They were all black; the pants, the shirt, the jacket. And there was a black bandana as well as some goggles.

“Ludwig’s better at costumes and shit than I am,” Gilbert said.

“The goggles are tinted, so no one will be able to see your eyes,” Ludwig explained. Alfred held them up to his eyes, looking in. It was a bit harder to see with them on, but he would be alright, especially in a place with more light than the forest at night. “The bandana is to hide the rest of your face. Don’t let either of them fall off, or they might recognize you.”

“And the hood on the jacket is to hide my hair?” Alfred asked with a slight laugh. It might just fall off, so he would have to be careful about that. “You really thought this one out, huh? So, when do we move out?”

“We’ll need to use tomorrow to make sure we understand the plan and work out any kinks,” Gilbert said. “The Queen and the Hatter have us pressed for time, so we can’t afford to laze around. So in two days we go for it. But if it doesn’t work, if anything goes wrong, we fall back without hesitation, is that clear? Then we’ll try again on the next day.”

“And what happens if someone does recognize me?” Alfred asked.

“Run,” Gilbert said clearly. “Hell, run to the Hatter if that will keep you safe. Knowing the Queen, she might just do something stupid like chase you into the forest, so even here might not be safe. It’s the middle ground between the Queen and the Hatter, so it probably won’t be safe for long.”

“What would we do if we fail?” Ludwig asked.

“There’s no plan for that,” Gilbert said. “So don’t fail. For now, we should all get some rest. We can go over specifics tomorrow and make sure our new Cat is well trained enough to fight.”

“Hey, I can fight just fine,” Alfred whined.

“When was the last time you’ve been in a real fight?” Gilbert scoffed. “One where you bled? Made other people bleed? Do you think in your current state of mind, you could hit someone with that bat with all of your strength?”

Alfred looked at the ground. No, he couldn’t. He didn’t want to hurt anyone, especially not Ivan. If Alfred actually had to fight Ivan, even if he was willing to hide his identity, he wasn’t sure if he could even try to land a hit on him. But if Ivan didn’t know who he was…

“Do you guys even know how he’s doing?” Alfred asked carefully. “Have you been checking up on everyone out there? Have you seen Ivan?”

“No, sorry,” Gilbert said quickly. Too quickly. Alfred narrowed his eyes. Gilbert was hiding something from him.

“Fine,” Alfred said. He would change and then head to sleep. It had been a long fucking day and maybe some sleep would do him some good. He just hoped Ivan could get some rest, maybe some peace. God, he hoped that Ivan was doing alright. How could all of this had happened so fast?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in one day because I'm an idiot! Woohoo!
> 
> Bit shorter of a chapter, mostly some filler, but some important things. Lots will happen next chapter, I promise. And now we’ve seen Ivan, for better or for worse. Alfred’s death hit him hard, so we’ll have to see how that affects him later on. Some actual fights to happen soon, so wish me luck with writing them!
> 
> See you next time!


	14. Chapter 14

“Okay,” Alfred said, practically jumping between his feet. He licked his lips before placing the stupid bandana over his nose and mouth. He could do this, he could do this. He just needed to go along with Gilbert’s plan long enough for him to figure out one of his own. He could see Ivan, figure out a plan from there. Help get them out of this stupid world. If the only way to get back home was to fix this place, then Alfred was gonna fix it. Single handedly if he had to.

After he tied a tight enough knot to make sure it wouldn’t fall, Alfred put on the goggles. Oh, it was gonna be hard to see… He shook it off, tightening the strap just enough. With the hood up, he was finished. And he felt like an idiot. Alfred looked over at Ludwig and Gilbert, who still looked perfectly normal and dressed completely normal.

“We good to go or are you guys gonna stare at me all day?” Alfred asked, kneeling down to pick up the metal bat. It was heavy, had a really good weight to it. Alfred had done plenty of practice swings against trees. He couldn’t fend off bullets, but that was what teleportation was for…supposedly. If Alfred was fast enough.

“It’s hard to recognize you, good,” Gilbert noted. “Just don’t talk, your voice is a dead giveaway.”

“I’ll try to keep my gift of a mouth silent,” Alfred retorted. He was anxious to see what this place would be like now. He hadn’t left the forest in forever and he almost expected some kind of hellscape once they left. But all Alfred cared about was seeing Ivan, seeing what kind of damage the Queen had done that he would have to undo.

“Tell me the plan one more time,” Gilbert said. “Just to make sure it’s clear.”

“Why don’t you make Ludwig do this?” Alfred whined.

“Because he’s been around me long enough to know when orders are orders,” Gilbert said. “And he wasn’t the one that yelled at me about not doing this in the first place.”

“The Hatter isn’t going to reach the Queen with his troops until tomorrow,” Alfred said. Arthur was already moving through the forest as they spoke, which made him nervous, but oh well. “So today it’s just us. You’re gonna go with Ludwig into the castle to find the Queen. You handle the big title while Ludwig handles all of her other people. I take Ivan, wherever he winds up being. And I keep him away.”

“Why?” Gilbert asked.

Alfred took a deep breath. “Because with either of the Alices around, it might make your plans go astray. We still don’t know which of us is really for the Queen and which one of us will help her by being around her.”

“Good,” Gilbert said.

“But the prophecy talks about stopping all that is cruel,” Alfred said. “Wouldn’t that mean that having her Alice around would help you?”

“Prophecies are a bit more like…guidelines,” Gilbert said stiffly. “No more questions, you have orders. We’re doing this today. And if anyone gets hurt, we fall back without question. No matter what, got it Alfred?”

“Yeah,” Alfred said simply. If they had to fall back, they would most likely have to wait until tomorrow, when Arthur would be there with everyone else. If it came to that, who knew what kind of chaos would happen. Alfred had to figure out what his plan was going to be before then. “Let’s go, I’m starting to get impatient.”

He had to see Ivan again, no matter what. He had to see what he could do to help him. What he had to make up for by being gone so long…

“Stay close, you haven’t tried to get out of the forest before,” Gilbert said before looking into the forest. He’d explored a bit through the forest the day before, so he knew some of the basics. Shortly after Gilbert disappeared, Alfred focused, taking a deep breath, before teleporting as well.

He was absolutely positive that he couldn’t get used the thrilling feeling that jumped down his spine as he teleported. A rush of wind whipped against his face as he appeared somewhere in the forest. He could see Gilbert just a short way ahead of him with Ludwig. They were moving slow for him, which he appreciated but also felt slightly annoyed by. They moved again and Alfred couldn’t help but stifle a laugh at the amazing feeling in his stomach and shooting through his spine. They continued moving over and over again until Alfred was all but blinded by the sun after they finally reached past the trees. The goggles helped with that, sure, but he hadn’t been happier to see the freaking sun.

He didn’t have a lot of time to enjoy the scenery before they were moving again. One thing he learned quickly from Gilbert and Ludwig was that they couldn’t teleport anywhere they couldn’t see. It was a sucky limitation, but Alfred could guess why. Didn’t want to teleport somewhere and hurt someone…

Alfred tried to take stock of the towns they passed on the way to the castle. No one was outside and it had a very creepy air to it. Obviously, they had a high control over this place. Either that or…the Queen seemed to have a habit of killing people she didn’t like. Maybe enough people just got on her nerves…

Alfred swallowed thickly, trying to make sure he focused ahead of himself. The Queen was no doubt expecting something, just probably not what they were doing. She probably expected the Hatter first. Before long, they were in front of the castle and the guards immediately took notice of them. All Gilbert had to do was nod and they scattered. Alfred aimed for the side of the castle, still letting the soldiers see him. He had to stay quiet and couldn’t let them see his hair or his face. But they had to see him. He had to get Ivan’s attention.

The way Gilbert reasoned, the Queen would be using Ivan for a lot of the hard work she didn’t want to do. Ivan was a capable, big guy, too, meaning he could definitely hold himself in a fight. From what Alfred understood, Natalia probably wasn’t going to leave her side, but the Alice was expendable. Alfred just had to hope that Ivan would come out…and he wouldn’t be in too bad of shape.

The soldiers were already starting to move and come out in higher numbers. There was shouting, telling everyone that the Cats were here and there was…a third one? Alfred smirked, keeping his distance but still staying teasingly close. They were starting to point their rifles at him and Alfred felt a terrible, terrible feeling form in the pit of his stomach. He wasn’t about to die again, no fucking way in Hell.

Seeing an opportunity, Alfred teleported behind the large group of soldiers, keeping solidly away from their guns. He took a few deep breaths, trying to focus himself. He kept his back to that fucking cliff, hoping he would never have to look at it again. Another deep breath. He could do this.

Alfred backed up a bit more and the soldiers turned to look at him, all going to follow. Alfred teleported and nearly shouted at the sound of gunshots, looking at where he had previously stood with wide eyes. He had to stay alive long enough to see Ivan again. He had to stay alive.

Deep breaths.

They pointed their rifles at him again, some running towards him. Alfred teleported to another safe spot, staying on his toes in case he had to move at a moment’s notice. The door to the castle opened with even more soldiers and a certain someone Alfred barely recognized.

“Ivan?” Alfred asked under his breath, looking at the man among the soldiers. The man stood as tall as ever, but there was something…dead about him, for lack of a better word. He was dull and he looked tired. And he was smoking. He wasn’t dressed much differently and he was holding what looked like a pipe. Perfect match for Alfred’s bat…but he didn’t want to have to fight him. He looked like a mess, honestly, and Alfred didn’t have it in his heart to do it.

“Okay, big guy,” Alfred said, keeping his voice low once he saw Ivan look directly at him, dropping his cigarette onto the ground. “Let’s do this.”

Alfred twirled the bat in his hand and took a deep breath. He needed to get Ivan alone and away from those guns. Alfred wasn’t about to get shot. So, Alfred focused, teleporting directly behind Ivan. He wasn’t sure how Ivan would react to this, so he had to move fast, gripping hard onto Ivan’s back. He closed his eyes tightly and teleported again, this time to a place he knew he could get to on top of the castle. He felt overwhelmingly weak, about ready to puke, and he stumbled as far from Ivan as he possibly could. He nearly backed off the edge of the castle as he tried to recollect himself.

Ivan recovered faster than Alfred, not even saying a word before swinging his pipe at him. Alfred blocked him with his bat, grunting with the force Ivan had hit him with. The metal of both objects clanged sharply. Alfred sucked in another breath before pushing forward with all of his strength, making Ivan stumble backwards. Ivan still didn’t seem like he was in the mood for talking, so Alfred just took a deep breath, poising his bat at the ready.

Stall for time, wait for Gilbert to give the signal that they were done and over with. Alfred wasn’t even entirely sure what Gilbert had in mind for the Queen…

Looking closer at Ivan, though, Alfred could tell that something was definitely, very wrong. Alfred fought back the urge to just take off this stupid mask thing and touch Ivan, tell him everything was okay, that Alfred was indeed alive. But Alfred didn’t have a plan…He definitely needed one.

Alfred didn’t attack, though. Ivan gave him a questioning glare with narrow eyes that caused a shiver to go down Alfred’s spine. He adjusted his grip on his bat just in time for Ivan to try hitting him again with the pipe. Alfred took a step to the side again, keeping away from the edge of the castle. He had to admit, the idea of falling absolutely terrified him. Ivan didn’t hesitate to try hitting him again and Alfred had to block him with the bat. Ivan was getting faster, like he was getting angry.

Alfred stayed curious and defensive, keeping Ivan busy while trying not to get hurt. Ivan started getting angrier and angrier, not bothering to hold the same restraint as Alfred. Alfred could barely block some of his hits and his hands and shoulders were starting to get tired. Finally, Alfred heard soldiers making their way close to them. It distracted him enough for Ivan to land a solid hit on Alfred’s stomach. Alfred grunted and then shouted as he felt his ribs snap and the air leave his lungs.

Alfred stumbled and, when he stepped back, his feet met air. His heart positively stopped.

“No!” Alfred screamed as he started falling. He teleported out of reflex, landing roughly on the ground, but completely intact. Alfred lost control of his breaths, each one shooting pain through his entire body. He was breathing so much, he was practically suffocating himself, his whole body shaking. All he could see was himself looking into Ivan’s terrified eyes as he heard the chain snap. All he could feel was a rush of air around him as he fell.

“You have his voice.”

Alfred snapped his head up to look at Ivan, who stood before him, positively shaking with that revolver in his hand, pointed at Alfred’s head. How long had Alfred been panicking for Ivan to catch up to him? Alfred couldn’t process the range of emotions passing over Ivan’s face with the emotions swirling through Alfred’s brain. It was too much to process. Alfred felt like he was going to vomit.

He had enough control over his own body to move forward and stop Ivan from doing something stupid. Alfred gripped onto Ivan’s arm and moved it up, into the air and they both froze at the sound of the gunshot.

Ivan tried to shoot him.

 _Ivan tried to shoot him_.

Alfred had to get away and fast in order to recollect himself, but he couldn’t do that with this gun in the way. Ivan seemed just as surprised as Alfred, recovering slower. Alfred took advantage of this and stole the gun out of Ivan’s hand and stepped back a few feet. He opened up the gun, dropping all of the bullets into his hand before throwing the gun back at Ivan’s feet.

“Take back your fucking gun,” Alfred growled, glancing around and seeing the amount of soldiers surrounding them. All those eyes… Alfred needed to run away. He had to run away, he couldn’t do this. The last time it was this bad…he had Ivan, but Ivan was in no shape to help him now. They had no time, no space. And Alfred needed to calm down now.

“Get back!” Gilbert shouted and Alfred stared at him with wide eyes. He must have heard the gunshot. Sure, the first ones didn’t count, but this was just one single shot after minutes of nothing. He must have come out to check on him and noticed the situation Alfred was in.

Alfred nodded, teleporting to where he dropped his bat, before sprinting back towards the forest. He used teleportation to get him there faster and he stopped the second he was surrounded by cool shadows. He fell against a tree, eyes screwed shut, yanking down the bandana so it was across his neck. Tears slipped by as the memory of him falling out of Ivan’s grip repeated over and over and over again in his brain. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t think. He remembered the sound of that gunshot, loud and clear.

He leaned over to his side as he felt bile rise in his throat, throwing up anything that had been in his stomach. He had already died so much, figuratively and literally…just the idea of dying again….He couldn’t fucking do it again. Not by anyone’s hand, not even Ivan’s.

* * *

That man…that… _third Cat_ had Alfred’s voice. It was probably Ivan’s own mind playing tricks on him. It had done it before, making him believe people he’d never seen before were Feliks or Toris or Eduard or Ravis. But that voice…He couldn’t handle it. That third Cat was going to die the next time Ivan saw him. He didn’t need more memories of Alfred. But he’d taken Ivan’s bullets with him. Unless he could get some more, he would just have to kill him the old-fashioned way.

Ivan stared at the gun at his feet for a second, glancing back to where the Cat had disappeared. The other two had gone with him, leaving everything quiet again, for now. Ivan knew about the Hatter’s ‘army’ coming for them tomorrow. And if the Cats came back, too…

Ivan knelt down and tried to pick up the gun, but his hands were shaking too bad for him to grip onto it. He couldn’t feel his fingers…

_Alfred_

Ivan let out a growl and punched the ground as hard as he could, hoping that would spark some feeling into his hands. When that failed, he punched again and again and again. At the very least, it worked to punch away any unwanted memories, but it didn’t help him calm down.

“Seems they ran away like the scared animals they are,” the Queen’s voice said behind him and he shuddered involuntarily. “Too bad, I would have enjoyed finding a way to get even more titles out of my hair. And that third Cat has my interest. Are you coming back, Alice?”

Ivan took a deep breath. His voice had to come out even. He knew from watching enough people that the Queen hated it when she could hear any kind of weakness. And at the very least Ivan wanted to live. At least for now. That was another idea worth stewing on once his mind got itself back in order.

“I need more bullets,” Ivan said. Thankfully, his voice came out even. He gripped harshly onto the revolver and stood up, hoping it would stay in his grasp long enough for him to make it to the safety of his room, where he could break down in peace.

“Your knuckles are bleeding,” the Queen said simply, looking down at Ivan’s hands. Ivan blinked, turning his hands over. This was nothing new over the past few weeks. “I’ll send a maid to help you clean up. You deserve a rest, go back to your room.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Ivan said simply, ducking past her to get into the castle soon. He didn’t want to let this anger out on someone who didn’t deserve it. At least not this time. The only person that warranted Ivan’s wrath was that new Cat.

“And do take care of yourself, Alice,” the Queen hummed. “We’ll need you in top form tomorrow.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Ivan nodded. He walked quickly through the castle until he reached his room, closing and locking the door. The maid could knock once she finally came. He dropped the revolver and he glared at it as it clattered to the ground. Ivan needed to hit something, make himself feel something that wasn’t an ache in his heart over…over…

Ivan slammed his fist hard into the bricks of the wall and his breath hitched at the feeling of his knuckles moving out of place. It wasn’t pain just…an observation. He hit the wall again with the same hand, looking at the crimson that smeared over it with distaste.

_“You shouldn’t be doing that to yourself.”_

Ivan choked back a sob at the voice in his head. He knew it wasn’t real, but it still caused a pang in his heart. If Alfred could see this…If Alfred were there…

 _“Hey, big guy, that can’t feel good.”_ He would take hold of Ivan’s hands, he would look him in the eye with those deep blue pools. He would care about him. _“What’s up? Do you want to talk about it? You shouldn’t bottle this up.”_ Alfred would lead him over to the bed, careful but calloused hands holding onto Ivan’s bleeding ones. _“You know, hitting the mattress would be a bit healthier way to get all this out.”_ And Alfred would sit him down and talk. _“What can I do to help, Vanya?”_

And Ivan would cry into him, hold him close and tight and make sure that he was never, ever taken away from him again. Ivan would forget about the stinging in his hands and take hold of Alfred, who would hold Ivan with just as much care. Ivan would kiss him slowly and carefully, memorizing every last inch of his face, his chest, his entire body. And he would never forget it just in case Alfred was ever taken away from him again for longer than even a few minutes.

A knock broke Ivan out of his thoughts. Ivan found himself sitting on the bed, alone, his shaking, bleeding hands in front of him. His eyesight was blurry with the tears that were slipping past his guard. His hands were unbearably painful as he stared at them. He was shaking all over and he stared at the ceiling, willing these emotions to go back where they came from. They had no place now. Alfred wasn’t going to come back and those emotions would never come back, either.

The person knocked again and Ivan sighed. He had no dignity anyway. He opened the door still trembling and gave the maid a look that easily portrayed to not say a word about his current state. She walked into the room, bandages in hand. Ivan simply held them out, glancing back at that bed.

The Queen hadn’t even bothered to give him the courtesy of a new room, so he knew it was the exact same bed he’d slept with Alfred in. It had stopped smelling like him about a week after he died.

Ivan had to get that voice out of his head. He had to kill that third Cat.

* * *

Alfred took a deep breath once he finally made it back to the pond, where he had agreed to meet Gilbert and Ludwig if they got separated. It had been a while, maybe an hour or two, but Alfred had collected himself again. More or less. The two Cats were sitting by a fire and immediately stood up after seeing him again.

“Are you out of your mind?” Gilbert all but shouted and Alfred winced. “Why the fuck didn’t you meet us back here immediately?”

“I lost track of time,” Alfred said, his voice croaking. His throat was sore from all that dry heaving. “Sorry.”

“What happened?” Ludwig asked carefully. Gilbert switched between glaring at both of them, still apparently not over Alfred ditching them.

“I…I fell,” Alfred said, blurting out the words. “And…uh…Ivan tried to shoot me, but he…missed.” Alfred held out his hand, which was holding the bullets. It took several times for him to pick them up once again, but now he was dropping them on the ground for good. He also dropped the bat at his feet, hoping he wouldn’t have to pick it up for a long time.

“Were you hurt?” Ludwig asked. “If we’re going back again tomorrow we should make sure you’re fully healed.”

“My ribs are probably broken,” Alfred said. “I…uh…wh-what about you guys? You, uh, ran out of there really quick.”

“We already healed,” Gilbert said. “While you took your sweet ass time getting here.” Alfred nodded absently, looking at the pond that they had used to heal. “Listen, kid, are you alright? You’re shaken up.”

“I’ll be alright,” Alfred said, absently walking towards the pond and sitting down in it. He unhooked the bandana and goggles from around his head and put them on the ground. He hissed as he felt his ribs and any other injuries fix themselves, but other than that he didn’t really say anything else.

“Are you sure?” Gilbert asked, obviously not believing him. Alfred nodded minutely. He could handle seeing Ivan again, that much he was sure of. He had to tell him that he was okay, that everything was okay. And Alfred had to start on his plan. They were going to get out of this world, back to where everything made sense and Alfred hopefully wouldn’t have to feel this way ever again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots and lots of drama. Neither Alfred nor Ivan are in a very good place mentally and this encounter really didn’t do much to help. Trust me, if Alfred hadn’t fallen, he probably would have given up on hiding his identity, but with everything that happened, he just had to run. Next chapter, the Hatter gets involved and things get even more interesting. Especially with Alfred’s plan finally getting somewhere.
> 
> See you then.


	15. Chapter 15

Alfred peeked through the trees, watching as Arthur and the others marched through. They were close to the castle now. Maybe just a few minutes and they would breach the trees and then it was only a matter of time before they made it through all of those villages. Alfred glanced over at Gilbert, who had a deep frown on his face. He had a plan for this, naturally, but it put a lot of strain on him. Alfred almost felt bad for what he was about to do.

He'd bide his time, wait until the perfect moment with Ivan…and then Alfred would go through with his own plan. Most of it was gonna be improv, but he could figure that out. He had a vague idea in mind. First, though, he had to let Ivan know he was alive. Hopefully get Ivan back on the right track.

He noticed Gilbert take his leave and Alfred followed him closely until they got back to the pond, where Ludwig was waiting.

“They’re right on time,” Gilbert said. “Let’s get ready and move out. We need to strike after they do, but we can’t give them enough time to get anything done.”

“Where do you want us to hide?” Alfred asked, putting up the bandana as he spoke. “It’s not like we blend in very well.”

“Just follow my lead,” Gilbert said. Alfred sighed, nodding. He put on the goggles and flipped up the hood. This was the last time he was gonna put on this ridiculous thing…Hopefully.

They started moving again, quickly finding their way out of the forest and in the town. Once again, no one was out and about, probably scared of the fight this time. Alfred had no doubt that the Queen knew Arthur was coming and she probably knew the Cats would be back.

“If we’re lucky,” Gilbert said quietly as they hid behind a building, looking at the entrance of the forest, “all of them will go inside the castle and we can go with the same formation as before. Alfred, we need you to keep Ivan out and away from this whole mess. Do you think you can still do that?”

“Yeah,” Alfred said, nodding seriously. He would have to be able to handle it. He had to make sure that both Ludwig and Gilbert were inside the castle where they couldn’t interrupt his plan. “I’m gonna be fine.”

“Are you sure?” Ludwig asked, obvious concern in his voice. Alfred smiled faintly and nodded, glad everything on his face kept that a secret. He could handle this. He took a deep breath, looking at the forest carefully.

Before long, he finally saw Arthur, but he looked a bit more…battle ready? He still had his hat on, but he had a couple of guns in holsters at his sides, as well as a sword and a gun in his hands. After that came everyone else, equally battle ready. Francis, Matthew, Lovino, Feliciano… It looked like Kiku was staying back, which was probably a good idea since they needed someone to watch the Hare's house… There were a ton of people on their side as well. It looked like they were going all-out on this battle. Alfred swallowed thickly. He hoped he could stop this in time…

“Let’s get closer to the castle,” Gilbert said. Ludwig and Alfred nodded, following him up to one of the last houses before the small expanse between them and the castle. Alfred shuddered at seeing that one cliff, looking back at Arthur’s army. They were moving slowly, but with sure steps. The Queen hadn’t made a move yet, from the looks of it. What was she waiting for? “Ludwig, let’s get inside now. Alfred, wait until you see a good moment and attract as much attention as possible. Get Ivan out here and away from the other main titles.”

“Gotcha,” Alfred said. “Good luck.”

“You, too,” Ludwig said. The two vanished and Alfred looked back at Arthur and the rest. They were moving at a pretty quick pace.

Looking back at the castle, Alfred noticed that finally some soldiers were coming out. They kept in formation, all pointing their rifles towards Arthur’s army. If Arthur had a plan, he better figure something out soon. Alfred stayed low, keeping his position as he watched them move closer. It was painfully quiet. No one said a single word and it made Alfred nervous. Antsy. He just wanted to get moving, see Ivan again…fix what had gone wrong. Hopefully.

Finally, Arthur moved first. He raised his hand into the air and Alfred watched with wide eyes as he made all of the guns in the guards’ hands float up in the air. He flicked his wrist and all of the rifles flew off the cliff, into the ravine waiting below. Well, that was one way to even the playing field…

Now, people started running and Alfred stopped paying attention to smaller details. It was loud and chaotic, but eventually everyone clashed in front of the castle. Alfred licked his lips, hopping between his feet. He really didn’t want to go into battle now, but he couldn’t exactly do much else. He needed to find Ivan, get enough attention and all that shit…Alfred narrowed his eyes, trying to focus on some details. God, he hoped he could get his glasses back soon… From what he could tell, Arthur and Francis had plowed ahead and made a hole in the Queen’s defenses, easily running inside without a lot of people taking notice. Matthew stayed outside, using all of his bombs he’d been working on creating. Feliciano and Lovino were actually holding their own in actual fights, apparently preferring hand-to-hand combat to using guns.

What surprised Alfred the most, however, was the fact that he could already see Ivan outside, among the soldiers. Alfred narrowed his eyes, hoping to see something, anything from this distance. Ivan was still using that pipe and his ribs already ached from the pain of getting hit by that again. He couldn’t see if Ivan still had that revolver on him, but Alfred hoped he didn’t.

Alfred took a deep breath. What better time to get moving than now? He gripped hard onto his bat, trying to stop how his hand was trembling. When that failed, he just decided to move forward. He teleported closer to the battle, enough to gather some attention. Once he got closer, a large number of eyes were on him.

“There’s another Cat?” Lovino snapped and Alfred smirked. Oh, he didn’t know the half of it. Almost immediately, Lovino focused his attention on Alfred. The guy was quick and took a quick few jabs at Alfred’s sides. Alfred was only able to block one, hitting Lovino with his bat to get him to back off. Feliciano was quickly at his side, though, getting a few more hits in. Alfred teleported a few feet away, hoping to gain some footing again.

Before he could, though, a little ball landed at his feet. There was a small explosion and he was completely surrounded by smoke. He coughed as it entered his lungs, making it near impossible to breathe. Before long, Lovino and Feliciano started trying to hit him again and Alfred started to see clearly. He clenched his teeth, teleporting away once again. It was a bad idea to join in so quickly.

He gasped when he felt something hard slam into his stomach and looked down to see Ivan’s pipe. Ivan was holding Alfred against him, using his pipe to cut off Alfred’s air. Alfred knew he couldn’t teleport with someone touching him so instead he swung his bat at Ivan’s feet, hoping it would cause enough damage to make him let go, but definitely not enough to do anything permanent. Ivan did let him go, and Alfred stumbled forward. He had to get Ivan alone and away from these guys.

Sadly, it looked like Ivan had other plans. He let out a shout that practically bordered on a scream and tried to slam the pipe down on Alfred’s head. Thankfully, Alfred had quick enough reflexes to block him with the bat overhead, but Ivan was stronger, causing Alfred to fall onto his knees.

“Ivan, please!” Alfred shouted, hoping his voice would be enough to get Ivan to come to his senses. If he was lucky, no one else in this battle would notice. The soldiers on both sides were too busy with each other to notice the big titles fighting like this…

“Shut up!” Ivan roared and Alfred blinked with wide eyes. Ivan had gotten angrier…He hammered his pipe into his side and Alfred fell over, feeling his ribs pop out of place again. “Be silent while I kill you.”

“Vanya don’t do this,” Alfred tried, teleporting a few feet away before stumbling up to his feet.

“I said shut up!” Ivan snapped, pulling out that damn revolver and pointing it at Alfred’s face. “Don’t you dare speak with his voice!”

So Ivan did still recognize him. Okay, well, that was something. Another little ball landed between them and Alfred looked up at Ivan, hoping that he was smart enough to get away just in case this thing was meant to hurt them. Instead, it was just another smoke bomb. Alfred took this to his advantage and teleported away, waiting until Ivan came back out, looking around for Alfred furiously.

“You want me? Come get me!” Alfred shouted at him. Ivan fired a shot and Alfred ducked out of the way, teleporting at the same time with barely enough space between him and the bullet. God, he hoped he could do something before Ivan did something he would really regret. Alfred ran and teleported back, behind the castle. Away from most of the fighting. He knew people would follow them, but he had to hope that he had enough time.

He stopped, however, when he looked at that cliff. Down there…it would take a long time for anyone to follow them. He swallowed thickly, but changed course. He appeared right at the edge of the cliff, turning around to wave at Ivan. He ducked away from yet another bullet and he started to get even more nervous. He had to hold onto Ivan to get him down there with him.

Alfred looked back, over the edge, and nearly threw up at the sight. His shaking grew worse and it was a wonder he still held onto that stupid bat. The others were getting close as well. It was now or never. Alfred took a deep breath before teleporting just behind Ivan, gripping hard onto his shirt. Ivan started to swing back, but it wasn’t until they reached the bottom of the ravine that the blow managed to connect with Alfred’s shoulder.

Alfred cried out, stumbling forward, but he refused to fall. Not yet. His whole body flared with fiery hot pain, but he could do this. He only needed to show Ivan that Alfred was really okay. That he was alive.

“Come on, big guy,” Alfred said. “Is that all you got?”

“You will be silent,” Ivan growled and Alfred took a deep breath. He waited until Ivan charged at him again with the pipe and then teleported behind him. Alfred slammed his bat into Ivan’s back, making the larger of the two fall onto the ground. Alfred went down after him. Ivan’s reflexes were fast and he was on his back in a second, but Alfred used the bat to press onto Ivan’s chest, forcing him onto the ground with all of his strength.

Alfred took a chance by letting go of one hand of the bat, pushing all of his weight onto Ivan’s chest, and violently pushed down the goggles and bandana.

“Ivan! It’s me! I promise!” Alfred shouted and Ivan stared up at him with wide eyes, stopping his struggling. They stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds before Ivan shoved him to the side, rolling on top of Alfred and pinning him with the bat. Alfred shouted in pain as he felt the metal pushing painfully into his chest.

“You’re not real,” Ivan breathed out, shaking his head violently. “Get out of my head. Alfred is dead!”

“Vanya! I’m right here! I’m breathing! I’m alive!”

“No! There’s no way he could have survived that. You’re tricking me. Get out of my head!” Ivan screwed his eyes shut, tears slipping past his guard and hitting Alfred in the face.

“The Cats saved me,” Alfred said, his breathing coming out ragged as the bat crushed his chest even more. “Ivan, please, you’re hurting me.”

“Alfred is dead,” Ivan muttered, seemingly to himself. “Alfred is dead. Alfred is dead. Alfred is dead.”

Alfred gritted his teeth. Ivan was distracted enough that Alfred could take hold of the bat and push it off him. With the leverage he had now, he gripped hard onto Ivan’s head and pulled him into a clumsy, violent kiss. Teeth clashed and the rough contact hurt Alfred’s lips and gums. But Ivan had frozen. Alfred pulled back carefully, looking at Ivan in the eyes.

“Please, Vanya,” Alfred muttered. “I’m right here, I promise.”

More tears slipped past Ivan’s guard. “You’re dead.”

“I was,” Alfred said, nodding. “I was. The Cats helped me. There was this…weird pond thing and some blood I guess? But I swear, I’m real and I’m alive. Right now. Right here.”

“I tried to kill you,” Ivan said numbly. He shook his head, fingers delicately tracing over Alfred’s facial features. He took in every groove of Alfred’s face, every line and detail, slowly but surely. “Alfred?”

“It’s okay, big guy,” Alfred said. Ivan moved forward and pulled Alfred into a tight, suffocating hug. Alfred gripped hard onto him back, not caring if he could breathe or not. Alfred stared crying now and that made him laugh, closing his eyes tightly. “I was so scared…”

“I’m sorry,” Ivan admitted. “I…you were dead. I thought…I didn’t….”

“It’s okay, Ivan,” Alfred said into his chest. “I forgive you. This isn’t your fault. It’s hers, technically. The Queen.”

“I did so many terrible things, Fedya,” Ivan cried and Alfred started rubbing his back. “I hurt so many people! I just wanted to feel something after you left me and I…”

“You don’t have to say it,” Alfred said.

“It’s worse than what I did to Feliks,” Ivan whispered, trembling terribly into Alfred. “It’s worse. I’m sorry. I didn’t…”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Alfred said, rubbing circles on Ivan’s back now. He didn’t know what to say, honestly. He didn’t know exactly what Ivan had done, but he regretted it so much. He was practically sobbing into Alfred’s shoulder. Alfred had underestimated what all this had done to Ivan’s head. “You’re not still thinking that way now, right? You regret what you did, right? You can turn it around.”

“How?” Ivan’s voice was so small, in contrast to the giant guy trembling before him.

“You can make things right,” Alfred said. “We’re…we’re Alices, right? We’re supposed to help this place. We’ll turn things around, get it going in the right direction. And you can apologize, if you need you. I’ll be there with you, I promise.”

“An apology is not good enough for what I did,” Ivan said. “I can’t just make things right and ignore what I did.”

“Then don’t,” Alfred said. “These people don’t have to forgive you, but they have to know how you feel about it. You have to show them you’re sorry, prove you regret what you did. Make sure they’re better off than they are now.”

“And if they really don’t forgive me?” Ivan asked, trembling.

“You shouldn’t apologize just to make yourself feel better,” Alfred mused. He was kind of pulling this out of his ass, but it kind of made sense. He had to think of something to say to Ivan, to get him into a state of mind where they could get moving. “They’ll forgive you if they want to. If you’re apologizing for their sake, it won’t matter what they say to you. But, Ivan…this really isn’t your fault.”

Ivan pulled away, his face red and puffy and his nose running. He sniffled and, under any other circumstance, Alfred would have thought it looked cute. But there was something in his eyes, a look of being completely lost and truly, horribly sad.

“It is,” Ivan said.

“Then I accept your apology,” Alfred said, looking him in the eyes. “Now prove to me that you can earn it.”

“Do you have a plan?” Ivan asked quietly.

“We’re not gonna let all of these people control us anymore,” Alfred said pointedly. “We’re not gonna let them push us around or decide our fate for us. We’re gonna march right up there, where they’re probably fighting with all their big titles and everything. And we’re gonna let them know that we are the Alices and that we’re gonna fix this world. And then we’re gonna get the hell out of here and never look back. We’re not getting hurt again. I promise you that.”

“Okay,” Ivan said, nodding. “I’m…I’m with you. I trust you far more than anyone else in this world.”

“Good,” Alfred said, slowly standing up with Ivan. “Take all the time you need to compose yourself. As much as I love to see you open up…we need to make sure they’re at least a little afraid of us.”

“I’ve missed you so much,” Ivan said, cupping Alfred’s face. Alfred smiled at him.

“I’ve missed you, too. And I promise I’m never going to leave you again.”

Ivan nodded, taking a deep breath. He dropped his hand, taking a few more deep breaths. His face returned to a normal color in no time, but Alfred noticed people coming closer. He narrowed his eyes, wondering how much time they had left.

“Okay, if we’re good, I’m gonna teleport us now,” Alfred said.

“How can you even-”

“Look, dude, now is not the time for questions,” Alfred said, glancing over at their company. “I can answer them later, but for now, we gotta move.”

“Right,” Ivan said, taking hold of Alfred’s hand with a firm grip. Alfred never wanted him to let go.

With a deep breath, Alfred teleported them back to the top of the cliff. The noise of the fight resumed around them and Alfred glanced to the castle. They teleported once again, just inside the doors, and Alfred continued, until they reached the throne room. They stood in front of the doors, which hung open to reveal the fight inside. Natalia was fighting against Arthur with Toris at her side while Eduard and Ravis went up against Francis. The Queen was occupied with Gilbert and Ludwig, who seemed to be giving it their all to fight against her. She was strong and fast, much faster than Alfred thought she could be.

Alfred took a deep breath, holding onto Ivan’s hand tightly. He wasn’t going to leave him again and these people weren’t going to separate them ever again. He looked at Ivan just to make sure that he was still together. Given enough time, they could be alone in a room and see what feelings they could work through together.

Alfred teleported them directly in the middle of the room and Gilbert was the first one to take notice. The Queen followed shortly after, staring at him with that sickly smile of hers.

“Well, this is a surprise,” the Queen said loudly. The other fights stopped almost immediately and Alfred glanced over long enough to see dropped jaws. Even Arthur had dropped his sword at the sight.

“Are you a fucking idiot?” Gilbert snapped.

“Yeah, but what else is new?” Alfred shrugged.

“You’re dead,” Arthur said pointedly.

“Well, the Queen’s tried to kill me before,” Alfred said, looking right at the Queen herself. “I’m a bit harder to kill than that.”

“Really?” the Queen asked. “Are you suggesting I try harder, then?”

“What are you doing?” Gilbert demanded.

“I’m trying to get home,” Alfred said, squeezing Ivan’s hand. “And apparently the only way to do that is to fix your fuck ups. So consider us new players in this game, not just pieces to push around anymore.”

“And what do you think you can do,” Arthur panted, still tired from his fight, “that we haven’t already tried?”

“The Alice for the Queen is supposed to prevent all that is cruel, right?” Alfred asked. “Please, tell me. In the three weeks I’ve been gone, has Ivan been able to do it?”

“I’ve been working on it,” the Queen said easily.

“You think starting a fucking war like this is going to do anything?” Alfred snapped. “We stuck around Arthur’s place for, like, two days. And look, he’s got enough guts to start this. The Alice for the Hatter will aid in the upheaval, right?”

“Alfred,” Gilbert hissed, teleporting beside him. “You don’t know what you’re doing.”

“I’m not letting us be used,” Alfred said pointedly.

“Fine, then, my Alice,” the Queen said happily. “What do you think of this?”

Alfred glanced at Ivan, who seemed to lock up at the sound of her voice. Alfred looked him in the eye, giving another gentle squeeze.

“I’m not leaving Alfred,” Ivan said. “And I agree with him.”

“And what are you even agreeing with?” Arthur asked nervously. “What’s your plan, if you’re so confident?”

“What if there isn’t the Hatter’s Alice and the Queen’s Alice?” Alfred offered. “That stupid prophecy said only one Alice was gonna fall. What if both of us make up that Alice? Like two halves of a whole?”

“You make no sense,” Natalia said, shaking her head.

“Hey, if there’s enough space in me to make me half Alice half Cat,” Alfred shrugged, “then that means I wasn’t full Alice to begin with. My idea’s better than sitting here and killing each other. It won’t solve anything and then we’ll never go home. I’m not afraid to leave all of your asses behind and running off where you won’t find us. You can keep fucking up your world but we won’t be a part of it. So either take our help now or we’re not coming back.”

“I don’t need your help to be successful,” the Queen said simply. “I think I’m doing just fine on my own.”

“That’s not what we’re for,” Alfred said. “We’re not here to help you win. Maybe this revolution was meant to show you something that you’re missing. Your people are rebelling against you and you don’t have a single fucking problem about that?”

“They’ll submit to me eventually,” the Queen said simply.

“Then why was there a prophecy about us coming to help you?” Alfred scoffed. “We’re here to help and you obviously don’t need help in that area.”

“This isn’t like you,” Ivan said and Alfred blinked, looking back at him in surprise, but Ivan was looking directly at the Queen.

“And how do you know what’s like me?” the Queen asked.

“Everyone here that we have seen resembles someone from our world,” Ivan said, forcing his voice to stay even. “Aside from the Cats, if I’m correct. But you are nothing like the Katyusha I know.”

“How dare you use my name.” the Queen scowled.

“Let us help you,” Alfred said. “Give us three days and if we haven’t…prevented all that is cruel, then you can continue your little war and we won’t interfere again. Deal?”

“And what about the Cats?” Arthur asked suspiciously. “I don’t trust them to do anything.”

“All you need is to make sure the prophecy is actually complete, right?” Alfred asked Gilbert. “That’s why you aren’t a part of this thing, right? Because the Cats just help the prophecy and then make a new one.”

“Yes,” Gilbert said. “But what you’re doing is dangerous. You’re going to get yourself killed. Again.”

“I’m not dying again for your world,” Alfred said pointedly. “And I’m not afraid of the Queen or anyone. I’ve already proved that I won’t be dying anytime soon. Try all you like.”

“Three days,” the Queen said. “Seems like a fair deal. If you can prove this plan of yours, I’ll let you keep playing your game. Hatter, do you agree to these terms? I’ll even let you stay in those village homes. They’ve gone empty recently, you see. We need a few new tenants.”

“They’re empty?” Alfred asked. Ivan stared at the ground, biting his lip.

“Fine,” Arthur said. “Three days. Now tell your soldiers outside to stand down.”

“We’ll see how many of your men are even left,” the Queen said happily. She nodded to Natalia, who swiftly left, Arthur and Francis following her close behind.

“Lud,” Gilbert said clearly. “We’ll meet back here in three days.”

The two Cats disappeared and Alfred felt himself finally beginning to relax. He was still tense, Ivan was still tense, but soon…soon they would be able to dig through their thoughts and maybe even get their shit together. If they were lucky.

“We can start tomorrow,” the Queen said simply. “Ivan knows where your room is.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Katyusha,” Alfred said with a simple bow as he followed Ivan out of the room. He was quick to leave the Queen’s presence, probably because of a lot of things Alfred missed. “Hey, did I say that right?” Alfred asked, hoping that his dramatic exit actually hadn’t been spoiled by something stupid like that.

“Your accent is very boorish,” Ivan offered. “But, then again, all I can hear from your mouth is you butchering the Russian language so it is nothing new to me.”

“Butchering?” Alfred scoffed. “Excuse me, if I ever decided to speak Russian, I would be freaking fluent and amazing at it!”

“I am sure,” Ivan said with a small smile. He stopped walking in order to wrap Alfred into a tight hug. “I have missed you so much, my sunflower.”

“I missed you, too, big guy,” Alfred said with a little grin. He felt some more tears pricking at his eyes at the sight of Ivan like this, but he held himself back. “Okay, okay, dude, how about we get to a private place before you start making me cry again?”

“Did you really mean what you said?” Ivan asked. “About never leaving my side again?”

“I swear to it,” Alfred said. “Not even death is gonna stop me.”

“Thank you,” Ivan said. “Truly.”

He kissed Alfred’s forehead before they started moving once again, back to a familiar room where they could be alone once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew, finally their little reunion. Considering how much time I’ve spent with them have long conversations together, I think I’m going to skip this next one. We have some more important stuff to deal with, like the Queen! Lots and lots happening. Anyway, finally Alfred and Ivan have decided to buck up and stop letting themselves get pushed around. This is Alfred’s plan and we’ll have to see how well it works!
> 
> Anyway, I’ll see you all next time!


	16. Chapter 16

Waking up was hard when every part of Alfred’s body ached. He could put on a brave face about it, but he was covered in bruises and had a couple broken ribs. Part of him hadn’t wanted to tell Ivan about it, but he still needed at least some medical attention. And he still didn’t have his vision back since he’d gotten so caught up in the moment that he forgot to ask Arthur for them back. Other than that, though…it was a pretty nice morning.

Waking up tangled with Ivan was an amazing way to start off the morning. And they stayed that way or a while, sharing sleepy kisses and snuggles that left Alfred smiling like a goofy idiot. There were still a few things to iron out, but nothing could be solved overnight. It would take some time to get both of them calmed down. Maybe they wouldn’t even fully return to normal, but they could get better. Mostly, Alfred was just worried for Ivan.

It was only a matter of time, however, before there was a knock on that door. Alfred was the one to get up, despite the protest all of his injuries gave. When he opened the door, he was greeted by Natalia, who seemed be even more moody than before.

“Breakfast will be soon,” she said stiffly and Alfred nodded.

“Cool, be right there,” Alfred said, glancing back at Ivan to see if he was actually okay with getting up and returning to the Queen. Alfred had a pretty good idea about what had happened while he was gone, so he knew how Ivan must feel about being so close to the Queen so soon. Ideally, they could just leave and never see her again, but that wasn’t a part of this plan. And sadly Alfred needed Ivan around in order for this plan to actually work.

Ivan knew what Katyusha was actually like and maybe he could be helpful in figuring out what went so terribly wrong with the Queen to make her like this. But if Ivan couldn’t handle being so close to her after all that had happened…Alfred would understand, but that would just make his job even more difficult. He only had two days now, after all.

Ivan was up and out of bed quickly and the two made their way down to the hallway.

“Are you sure you’re feeling okay?” Ivan asked curiously. “Nothing hurts too much?”

“Dude, my everything hurts,” Alfred said bluntly. “But there’s nothing we can do about it.”

“I’ve already hurt you so much,” Ivan muttered, looking Alfred over intently.

“You didn’t know it was me,” Alfred said with a simple shrug. “Hey, I could always go find that stupid pond again and then I’ll be good as new, right? Besides, if we finish shit down here soon, we’ll be back to our world. And, I mean, hopefully these injuries won’t move over.”

“Hopefully,” Ivan mused. “Part of me wants to just forget what has happened here…but I wouldn’t want to forget you.”

“Dude, if there’s any way I can forget everything except you, I’m all fucking for it,” Alfred said, laughing slightly. He winced at the pain in his ribs, but tried not to be too obvious about it. The goal was to make sure Ivan felt better, after all. “Are you really cool with seeing everyone? You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“The faster we can leave, the better,” Ivan said. “I would rather like to leave before you get even more hurt.”

“Ditto,” Alfred said. They reached the doors to the dining room and he took a deep breath. Last time he had a meal with the Queen, it was when he didn’t know what to do or what was going on. Now he had to be strong and confident. The goal was to get the Queen back to what Katyusha should be like…Hopefully. Alfred wasn’t fully sure if this would work, but it was worth a shot. Anything was better than sitting around waiting to get killed again.

So far, at least, it didn’t seem like the Queen wanted to kill him, then again Alfred didn’t trust her worth a damn.

The dining room looked just as normal as it did before, everyone seated except for the Queen, waiting patiently. It was almost like they hadn’t actually killed Alfred a few weeks ago. Alfred swallowed thickly as he sat down with Ivan, avoiding everyone’s eyes. It took a few deep breaths until he looked up at the others. Natalia met his gaze easily while the other four seemed to be looking away from him. Well, at least they felt guilty about it. They were just following orders, after all, but Alfred still couldn’t help but feel a little angry at them as well. He still wasn’t entirely sure how this whole title thing worked, but that was something he could learn, he guessed.

“This feel awkward to anyone else?” Alfred asked, tapping his fingers on the table. Ivan was probably tempted to hit Alfred in the side again, if it weren’t for Alfred’s broken ribs. He just hated silence and after doing nothing for a whole week and just lying in a pond, he was a bit antsy to go and actually do something. And talk to someone that wasn’t Gilbert or Ludwig.

“Maybe you should learn when to be quiet,” Natalia said simply.

“I think my voice has to be one of my best features,” Alfred said proudly. Ivan seemed to be satisfied by simply flicking Alfred in the head as a means to try to keep him quiet. “Hey!”

“You seem a bit too relaxed,” Toris said carefully, “if you don’t mind my saying.”

“She’s already killed me,” Alfred said with a shrug. “What else can she do?”

“Fedya,” Ivan said simply and Alfred shrugged.

“You gotta be confident with these people,” Alfred said, though he had no doubt that most of this confidence would just go out the window the second the Queen entered the room. For now, he just had to build up what he had.

“Just be careful,” Ivan said quietly.

“I got this, Vanya,” Alfred said. “I keep my promises, so don’t worry.”

Ivan nodded carefully and, before he could say anything else, the doors opened. The Queen walked in, a smile on her face as confident as ever, and Alfred was damn tempted to try wiping it off her face. Another part of him kind of wanted to run away and make sure he and Ivan could stay safe, as far away from her as possible. But he had to suppress that urge for now and stay put. He could at least try to look strong.

The Queen seemed to revel at the sight of everyone looking at her as she entered the room, walking confidently over to her seat. As soon as she was sitting, the food came in. Alfred still felt uncomfortable with the way things worked in a castle, the idea of people actually serving him was just plain weird. At least with the Hatter and everyone else, it felt more like a family dinner or something, with people actually willing to cook just because they cared about each other.

“So, do you have any plans for this idea of yours, Alice?” the Queen asked simply.

“Call me Alfred. If I’m going to start using your name, you should use mine, right?”

“You shouldn’t be using my name,” the Queen said, narrowing her eyes.

“Why not, Katyusha?” Alfred asked, hoping that he actually pronounced it right. When he looked at Ivan, he gave a little shrug and Alfred figured he was at least close. “Afraid of getting close to people?” Alfred was a bit afraid to pry, but it wasn’t like she could kill him. At least, not without more people around. Hopefully he had proved that trying to kill him was useless…but that felt like a bit too much to hope for.

“With a title like mine, actual names have no place,” the Queen said simply before she started eating. Her tone of voice made it clear that there was no room for more conversation, but Alfred had a knack for annoying people. Who was he to stop this trend of being obnoxious?

“So, I’m supposed to be getting to know you, right?” Alfred asked, playing with his food with his fork as he spoke. He blurted out the first question to come to mind. “What’s your favorite food?”

It was quiet for a while as everyone in the room simply stared at him in shock. Ivan sent him a glare, most likely for not knowing how to shut up. The most surprised out of everyone in the room, however, had to be the Queen, who sat with her fork still halfway to her mouth, her food falling onto her plate. Alfred smirked proudly at the reaction he was able to get out of these guys over just a simple sentence.

Finally, the Queen spoke up, oddly quiet all considering. “I…honestly don’t have one.”

“That sucks,” Alfred said, hoping he kept his voice conversational. The tense atmosphere of the room completely contradicted the calm nature of their conversation. “What kind of food do you at least enjoy, then?”

The Queen seemed to be in thought for a moment and Alfred was honestly curious what her answer would be. She seemed to be playing along for now, which was nice.

“I like dessert,” the Queen offered. Alfred nodded, glad this was actually going rather well.

“I love dessert, too, man,” Alfred said. “But nothing can beat a nice, juicy hamburger.” Ivan flicked him in the head again. “Ow! What was that for?”

“I should have known you would like that food the most,” Ivan said bluntly.

“Killjoy,” Alfred muttered before looking at the other five. “What about you guys? You got a favorite kind of food?” Toris, Eduard, and Ravis all seemed taken aback and almost scared of the question, apparently not expecting Alfred’s change of attention. Natalia simply glared at him again, but it looked like Feliks was ready to speak up.

“I’m totally all for breakfast, just not early in the morning,” he said simply and Alfred smiled. Perfect, okay, he had a little bit of a plan in mind now.

“Oh, yeah, I totally agree with you there,” Alfred said, leaning forward.

“I-I like quick snacks,” Ravis piped up and Natalia almost looked offended with how open everyone was acting. Alfred just smiled, looking at the others.

“I have to admit I like dinner, especially when I get to make it for a small group,” Toris admitted and Alfred’s smile only grew.

“I like dinner as well,” Eduard said. “Your dishes are some of the best I’ve had, Toris.”

“Oh, th-thank you,” Toris said happily.

“And what about you, King?” Alfred asked languidly. He knew what kind of adverse reaction he’d get from Natalia if he used her actual name, so he’d just go for her title for now. He’d work his way to her name eventually. Just like with the Queen. “You’ve gotta enjoy something, right? I mean, you’re not completely heartless.”

“I guess desserts aren’t bad,” Natalia mused and Alfred grinned.

“So what kind of pastries do you guys have here?" Alfred asked. "I mean, you’ve gotta have some tasty shit. Not like I’ve really had any…”

“Well, my personal favorite has to be filled with berries,” Eduard mused.

“Those are so hard to make since you have to actually go into the forest to get them,” Toris offered. “I love those, too.”

“But what about the ones filled with chocolate?” Ravis asked.

“Are you serious?” Feliks scoffed. “Obviously the ones coated in sugar are the best.”

Alfred leaned back happily as the conversation continued. No more tense atmosphere and all it took was a light push. At least four of them just wanted to have a normal conversation. And the Queen wasn’t stopping any of it, which was the most surprising. Natalia seemed to soften slightly, but not much. It was just a matter of time.

Alfred smirked triumphantly at Ivan, who rolled his eyes, but smiled at him. He leaned forward, brushing his lips against Alfred’s temple. “I’ll admit, it’s a cute idea. Do you think it will work?”

“Well, it’s all I can go off of for now,” Alfred said with a slight shrug. “So…what’s your favorite food?”

“You wouldn’t know how to pronounce it, my darling,” Ivan said happily, patting Alfred’s shoulder lightly. “But perhaps I’ll be lucky enough to show it to you someday once we get out of this world.”

“I’d like that,” Alfred said.

* * *

“Okay, so Kat, can I call you Kat?” Alfred waited for a response from the Queen, who sat on her throne ahead of where Alfred stood beside Ivan. Natalia stood just behind her, but other than that, no one else was around. It was just the four of them and Alfred was starting to feel nervous again. Well, as long as the Queen didn’t try to kill anyone and Alfred didn’t fall…everything should go well.

“If you must…” the Queen said slowly, narrowing her eyes. Alfred smiled proudly. That was better than constantly butchering her name. There was no way he was gonna get along with her if he kept mispronouncing it.

“Awesome. So, Kat, what else should I know about you?” Alfred asked. When he didn’t get a response, he piped up once again. “I mean, I’m supposed to be getting to know you and to understand you, right? My thought process here is that you either can’t see or don’t want to see the harm you're bringing to all these people.”

“I’m giving success to my title,” the Queen said harshly. Alfred couldn’t help but notice Ivan flinch at the sound of her raised voice “Something that hasn’t happened in a long time.”

“Okay, so that gives me a little bit of an answer,” Alfred mused. “Tell me about your title, then. I’m more or less sure what it means to be a Cat, but that’s pretty much all I’ve got. What does it mean to be a Hatter or a Queen?”

“A Hatter is about freedom for the people,” the Queen said boredly. “Freedom of expression and the ability to do what you want without rules. The Queen is there to give order and keep everyone in their place. Generally, the two are equally balanced, but over the past couple hundred years, without an Alice, the balance has tipped. In the Hatter’s favor.”

“Interesting,” Alfred said, looking at Ivan just to check and make sure he was still okay. If he needed to, Alfred was sure he could handle himself alone if Ivan needed to go rest or go for a walk. But Ivan looked alright. Or at least he was putting on a brave face. After this, they could have some alone time to check and see how he was feeling on the inside.

“So what does that mean for you?” Alfred asked carefully. “If the balance has tipped, does that mean that the Hatter is more powerful?”

“Believe it or not, he and I are actually at the same level of power,” the Queen said amusedly. “It meant that my title was a joke when it was given to me and I am determined to make sure it is never seen that way again.”

“So you just want it to be seen as a tyrant?” Alfred asked and the Queen glared at him. “I mean no offense, but while you might be proving that the Queen is strong, you really aren’t showing a lot of fairness or kindness.”

“And when has that gotten the Queen anywhere?” the Queen asked simply. “The reason my title was worthless when I was given it was because the Queens allowed themselves to be walked over. And the world fell into chaos because of it. With an ability like the Queen’s you can’t afford just a simple kindness.”

Why hadn’t Alfred been asking these questions before? He was so focused on self-preservation that he hadn’t bothered actually trying to learn anything about the world other than the Alices. Well, he was changing that now…

“Well, where I’m from, a Queen really isn’t worth much if she doesn’t have the faith and trust of her people,” Alfred said. “That kind of comes with the territory of ruling a country or…world. However this place works. I mean, if the people don’t like you, they’re going to revolt. They just did. Didn’t we just discuss that that was the purpose of the Alices helping the Hatter?”

“I know what’s best for the people,” the Queen said simply. “I make the rules to keep people safe.”

“Yeah, but if the people aren’t listening, then what’s the point?” Alfred asked.

“Why are we letting them just talk to you like this?” Natalia asked the Queen impatiently. "This has no point. I say we just attack now while they don’t expect-”

“I’m giving it two days,” the Queen said simply. “Though so far they haven’t been doing a very good job of convincing me. While you’re amusing, you haven’t changed my mind.”

“You care about the people in this world,” Ivan said before Alfred could saying anything else. “At least, that’s what you’ve lead me to believe. What you are doing now is not helping anyone, it is only doing harm. Katyusha, I know that this hatred is not natural to you.”

“You know nothing about me,” the Queen said with narrowed eyes. “You only know of a copy of me.”

“Then let us learn about you,” Alfred pressed. “If you let this stupid fighting keep going on and you keep caring more about your title than yourself, then people are going to get hurt. You’re probably going to get hurt.”

“And when did you start caring about things like that?’ the Queen asked simply, with a small smile.

“Since fulfilling this stupid prophecy is gonna get us home,” Alfred said. “I thought we went over this.”

“You at least have to admit that you have been cruel to everyone you’ve been placed in charge of,” Ivan said.

“It’s a necessary cruelty,” the Queen said simply.

“Please, there’s no such thing as a necessary cruelty,” Alfred scoffed.

“I’m tired of this,” the Queen said with a wave of her hand. “You two may rest until I summon you again.”

“Hey!” Alfred snapped. He didn’t like being forced to be quiet off in a corner. As much as alone time with Ivan was appreciated, this just felt like the Queen didn’t want to admit they were getting to her. “That’s not how this works.”

“It works how I say it does,” the Queen hummed, glancing back at Natalia. “Make sure they reach their rooms safely, I would hate for someone to trip and fall.”

Alfred narrowed his eyes at her, but he didn’t fight much as they were led out of the room. At least they had made a fair amount of progress. But he needed something more…something he hadn’t thought of yet in order to actually do something worthwhile. He only had a short time before the fighting started again and the prophecy was ruined for good.

* * *

It wasn’t until after dinner that Alfred could actually try again. The Queen evidently decided to skip out on both lunch and dinner, apparently too busy with her usual shit to bother with them. It gave Alfred and Ivan plenty of time to talk and try to sort through a few other emotions. Granted, he wasn’t quite sure if any more could be done by just talking. Getting out of this world was probably the best way to make sure they started getting better and moving past all of this. But they couldn’t do that with Katyusha the way she was now.

So, as they walked back into the throne room, the Queen boredly tapping her fingers on her throne, Alfred hoped that he could come up with something that could work.

“So, you’re still trying,” the Queen said simply and Alfred nodded. Maybe Ivan could think of something really good. He did have a few good interjections before and he was the only of the two of them to actually know Katyusha back in the real world. “Well, do you have any new tactics or will I just be bored again?”

“We’re about to find out,” Alfred said. Of course, they had been brainstorming together in the time they had been alone, but so far there were really no amazing ideas that would get them very far. They only had one day after this and then everyone would be fighting again. But what could they do to make sure she sees that what she’s doing was wrong? She made it very clear that she believed what she was doing was right and the only way to bring back the power of her title.

Prevent all that is cruel…Way easier said than done, apparently.

“I’ll admit, you trying to make sure my underlings actually have fun at meals is not as annoying as I thought it would be,” the Queen mused. “They seem to have a lot more energy now, but they do still obey orders, something I didn’t expect.”

“Yeah?” Alfred asked. “What do you mean?”

“At first,” the Queen said, “I thought the reason you were trying to get them to like you was to make them turn against me. Make me weaker so it was easier to control me.”

“That was never our intention,” Ivan said simply.

“I can admire your perseverance,” the Queen said. “But simply showing me this about my subordinates is not going to change my mind about how I will run this world once the Hatter is out of my way.”

“And what are you going to do once you’ve killed everyone?” Alfred asked. “From the way things are headed, I can tell that you just intend to kill everyone that gets in your way. Eventually, there’s going to be no one left.”

“When someone dies, another is born with the same title,” the Queen said simply with a wave of her hand. “In all honesty, ruling children might actually be easier than ruling this rowdy lot.”

“And what about when you die?” Alfred asked. “No one’s immortal, not even here. Do you really want your title to go down in history as a tyrant?”

“My title is strong now because of me,” the Queen pressed.

“Strength doesn’t mean shit if people don’t respect it,” Alfred said. The Queen raised a brow at that and Alfred kept going. “There’s a reason there’s a rebellion.”

“It’s because you were here to spark it,” the Queen said.

“It’s because people don’t respect your power,” Alfred continued. “All you’re doing to show strength is killing people and, eventually, people are gonna stop being scared. Do you really want the next Queen to end up like this? Surrounded by hatred and being hated by everyone around them?”

The Queen actually faltered at that. Alfred tried to think back through what he said to try and find what caused such a reaction. “It’s because of me that the next Queen won’t end up like this,” she said.

“If all your power relies on is killing people,” Ivan said, “they will be forced to act just like you to keep it.”

The Queen was quiet for a moment, appearing deep in thought. Alfred took this as another chance to speak up. They were getting to her, causing her to rethink her actions. Maybe she just need some more pushes in the right direction.

“Look, I don’t know what happened to make you act like this, who pushed you in this direction, but you have a chance to stop this. People here may not be willing to just forget what you’ve done, but maybe if you start making steps in the right direction they might start to forgive. You can still give your title power through kindness. Be the first of the Queens in a long time to prove that.”

“They won’t forgive,” the Queen said, narrowing her eyes.

“What makes you so sure?” Alfred asked.

“Have you?”

“Not yet,” Alfred said. “But, hey, you’ve literally killed me and I’m standing in front of you, not even thinking about revenge.”

“And the other Alice?” the Queen asked, looking towards Ivan. “Would you even think of forgiving me?”

Alfred looked at Ivan carefully, knowing the answer that was about to come out of his mouth. They’d talked about him asking for forgiveness from his old friends…but this was another thing. Ivan shouldn’t just forgive her for the sake of making all of this end faster. Who knew what that would do to Ivan’s mental health?

“No,” Ivan said clearly. “Because of your decisions I was forced to do a lot of things that can’t be undone. Alfred is far quicker to forgive than I am. But if there is one thing he has taught me it’s that the people you’ve hurt don’t need to forgive you. I’ve gotten to know you and I know Katyusha and if you were to tell me that you were trying to make things right and to do better, I would trust you.”

“How?” Katyusha asked quietly. “I’ve done so much to you.”

“You are not a liar,” Ivan said. “You might be a murderer and a tyrant but you have not lied. You are brutally honest to the point that it hurts. And I know there is a kindness somewhere inside you. I trust you to find the ability to bring it out.”

“Kat, we all just want one thing,” Alfred said. “Home. We want to go home but the people here just want things to return to what they were before all of this happened. They want their home again and you can work to give it back to them. You can have your home back to the way it should be and you don’t have to sacrifice any power to do it. You can be strong and kind at the same time.”

Katyusha was quiet for a long time, her face deep in thought. Alfred shifted between his feet awkwardly. He didn’t expect to get this far in just one conversation, but maybe she really did want what was best for the world, but let herself be blinded by the wrong ides of strength. If they were lucky, this could all end in their favor.

“I’m going to sleep on this,” she said, standing up suddenly.

“Uh, yeah, sure, go ahead,” Alfred said dumbly. She didn’t say another word as she left, Natalia following her close behind and leaving Ivan and Alfred alone in the large room.

“You really are quite amazing, Fedya,” Ivan said happily, looking over at him.

“You’ve been doing most of the heavy lifting here,” Alfred said with a small chuckle. “I mean…what you said about trusting her that was…I’m proud of you.”

“Yes, but you are living proof that you can be strong and kind at the same time,” Ivan said, kissing Alfred’s forehead lightly. “You are much, much stronger than I could ever be.”

“That’s my line,” Alfred said. “Come on, I think we’re a deserving of a good rest.”

“With my nightmares, we never get a very good rest,” Ivan mused as Alfred started leading them out of the room.

“We just have to get to bed early enough,” Alfred chimed. “Even if we wind up waking up in the middle of the night, we’ll get plenty of sleep. C’mon big guy, I missed out on weeks with cuddling with you and I’m not about to let an evil queen keep us from sleeping together.”

“Fine,” Ivan hummed, allowing himself to be pulled by the smaller male. “You really do get too excited over things.”

“Yeah, says the guy that started sobbing into my chest when he saw me,” Alfred said with a smirk. Ivan frowned slightly but Alfred just laughed, walking even faster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you notice my writing quality going down (which I really, really hope you don’t) it’s because I’m trying to finish this relatively quickly. I’ve gotten plot bunnies in my head for other stories that just won’t calm down. But I’m trying to keep the pacing good and the ideas good, so hopefully you won’t notice much of a difference. Anyway, lots of progress with the Queen. We’ll learn a bit more about her past next chapter and then things will finally start closing up. There’s about two chapters left and the last one kind of counts as an epilogue. Sort of.
> 
> Anyway, see you next time!


	17. Chapter 17

Matthew bit his lip as he looked closely at the mechanics of the bomb he was working on. He hated being in one of these houses that felt ghostly empty, but he had to make do and keep himself distracted. The best way to do that was to make more bombs, at least with the materials he had at hand. He was just screwing in a small screw when he heard a noise. He waited until he knew for sure it wasn’t going to blow up in his face before he looked around. But there was no one inside.

Great, now he was just as paranoid as the Hatter. He sighed as he turned back to his bomb. All he needed to do was put a cover on it to not expose the mechanisms. After that, everything was okay.

“Whatcha got there?”

Matthew yelped, dropping the bomb onto the desk as he felt his heart positively hammer in his chest.

“Wh-what the-” Matthew said breathlessly, looking at the person who was stupid enough to surprise someone _making a freaking bomb._ What he certainly didn’t expect to see was one of the Cats standing in front of him, laughing his ass off. “What the hell is wrong with you?” Matthew had heard about the older Cat and how he was…well, there was a whole list of things; rebellious, ridiculous, hyperactive. Matthew had no idea that he also apparently had a death wish.

“You should’ve seen your face!” the Cat said in between fits of laughter, holding onto his stomach.

“I-I could still detonate this,” Matthew said simply, holding up the little device in his hand.

“Calm down, jeez.” The Cat smirked after he calmed down. “I just wanted to talk. Say hello.”

“Why?” Matthew asked. He also knew about those rumors of when he was little and got lost in the forest. That it was a Cat that saved him. But why wait this long to talk to him? Why now?

“Because maybe shit’s gonna stop going crazy,” the Cat said with a shrug. “Who knows, maybe the Alices actually know what they’re doing.”

“Why…me?” Matthew asked.

“Wanted to see how the little mouse I saved all those years ago grew up,” the Cat said.

Matthew blinked, not exactly expecting this to escalate so quickly. A lot was happening recently and it was a little hard to wrap his head around it all. The Alices fell, then they disappeared, then the Queen had them, then Alfred died, and there were three Cats and Alfred wasn’t dead anymore and now they were waiting for the Queen to stop her cruelty. And to add onto it, a Cat was trying to bond with him while they had a calm moment.

“I know, my level of awesome is just too much to take in at once,” the Cat said happily. “But, seriously, I do just wanna talk. If you wanna…put down the explosive that would be kind of nice, too.”

“D-do you really think th-they can do that?” Matthew asked. “W-with the Queen? I mean, ever since I can remember…it’s been like…this.”

“If there’s anything I know, it’s that Alfred is hard-headed enough to make anything work,” the Cat said, crossing his arms over his chest. He really did just want a simple conversation. Matthew set down the bomb and turned to face him fully. Why not just have a conversation? What could it hurt?

“I-I still can’t b-believe he would go back to the p-person that killed him,” Matthew mused.

“That kid’s willing to do anything for the ‘love of his life’,” the Cat scoffed and Matthew couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Seriously, you would think that a fucking Cupid hit him straight in the heart with an arrow.”

“A lot m-must have happened since the last time I saw them,” Matthew said with a chuckle. “Th-they were about r-ready to tear out each other’s th-throats at the Hare’s mansion.”

“I bet they still are,” the Cat said with a smirk. “At this point, I’ll bet they’ve eaten each other in more ways than one.”

“Gross!” Matthew laughed, kicking the Cat in the leg. “I don’t want to think about them doing that.”

“Please, like you haven’t already gagged with the Hatter and the Hare around,” the Cat said. “They’re even more obvious, you should see them when they’re alone!”

“What are you, a spy?” Matthew asked.

“Teleporting has its uses,” the Cat said proudly. “But, hey, we’re meant to be getting close here, starting a new page if the Queen winds up figuring her shit out. Tell me something I wouldn’t know from teleporting. Give me your name. I-If you’re comfortable, that is.” The Cat rushed his last few words and Matthew noticed a slight blush on his cheeks with a small smirk.

“Matthew. And wh-what about you? You have to return the f-favor, right?”

“Gilbert. I know it’s a little hard to differentiate between the Cats. Maybe this will make things a little easier.”

“Well, maybe-”

Matthew was cut off by someone opening the door and he jumped once again, wondering why no one bothered knocking anymore. Wasn’t he known for dealing with explosives at this point?

“It looks like the Alices might have done something,” the Hare blurted out, but froze at seeing the Cat in the room as well. “Well, was I…interrupting something?”

“Yes,” Gilbert said before Matthew could say no. “What did they do now?”

“The Queen’s called for a meeting so we’re about to find out,” the Hare said. “I’m glad you are already here, saves us the trouble of trying to find you.”

“Way to ruin a moment,” Gilbert muttered and Matthew giggled, standing up.

“I’m…p-probably still going to be building some th-things after this,” Matthew offered. “I w-wouldn’t mind some c-company while I work.”

“I wouldn’t mind being that company,” Gilbert said with a happy wink. “Now let’s get moving. See if the Queen has anything worthwhile to show us.”

* * *

Admittedly, Alfred was kind of nervous when Natalia came and told them that the Queen had an announcement to make. Apparently, she was gathering the Hatter and everyone else, a whole day ahead of schedule. So either what they said to her really affected her or she just changed her mind and planned on continuing with her crazy war. But Ivan seemed calm and confident that it was the former, so Alfred allowed himself to relax a little bit. He was still a bit anxious, but he could put on a brave face for a few minutes, at least.

The Alices were the first to come into the throne room, even before the Queen or King themselves showed up. Alfred gently squeezed Ivan’s hand, mostly as reassurance for himself. Hopefully this would all end with them finally being able to go home. They were only alone for a short while before the Cats showed up, literally appearing out of nowhere just a few feet next to them. Ivan seemed more surprised by it than Alfred, which made Alfred giggle slightly.

“Long time no see, guys,” Alfred said simply and Gilbert raised a brow at him.

“You really know how to test my patience, kid,” Gilbert said, shaking his head. “This big plan of yours better be worth it.”

“If not, you can just continue your little war,” Alfred chimed. “Ivan and I can just go to the other side of the world and you won’t have to worry about us anymore.”

“I hope for all of our sakes you managed to do what you wanted,” Ludwig said. “With everything happening so soon, I’m not so sure.”

“Hell, neither am I,” Alfred mused.

Before long, the doors opened and Alfred was a bit surprised to see Arthur and everyone else come in before the Queen. Where was she? Arthur stayed quiet as he walked in with Francis at his side. Lovino and Feliciano whispered among themselves and Alfred didn’t bother trying to listen in on their conversation. Matthew and Gilbert shared a glance, which confused Alfred a little bit, but he wasn’t sure if now was the best time to question it.

“So, where is Her Majesty?” Gilbert asked. “She’s normally self-important enough to love being the first one in the room.”

“She likes to be dramatic,” Alfred said, laughing.

The door did finally open a few minutes later and The Queen, true to her usual dramatic flair, walked purposefully between the group in front of her throne without a word. She seemed…happier than usual, which was interesting to see. She had a slight skip in her step and a smile on the edge of her lips.

“I’m so glad to see you all could make it,” she hummed as she walked happily to her throne, Natalia following her close behind. After her came Feliks, Eduard, Ravis, and Toris. All of the major titles were in one place, which made Alfred a bit nervous but as long as he stuck close to Ivan, he was sure he’d be fine.

“It hasn’t even been a full three days,” Arthur noted. “Something interesting must have happened.”

“I’ll admit that, while the pestering was fairly annoying,” the Queen said, sitting down with a smile on her face. But it did seem a bit less…sadistic than before. Maybe she really did think a lot on what they had said. Alfred really, really hoped that this meant they could finally get back home and as far away from this world as possible. At least in the real world, it wasn’t likely that he was going to get killed. “The Alices did give me plenty to think about that I hadn’t considered before.”

“And what does that mean?” Arthur asked skeptically. Alfred squeezed Ivan’s hand a little tighter in anticipation for what was to come.

“I’m willing to at least give it a shot,” the Queen continued. “The um…strength through kindness ideal that the smaller one seems so obsessed with.”

Smaller? Alfred fought back a little scoff while Ivan fought back a smile.

“Really?” Gilbert asked, arms crossed over his chest. Even the other titles under the Queen seemed a bit shocked and confused. Naturally, everyone stayed on guard considering how quickly the Queen was known to change her mind.

“I know you won’t forgive for what I’ve done,” Katyusha admitted. “I don’t think I should be forgiven. What I did can’t be undone. But I can try to turn a new page…perhaps.”

“And why should we trust you?” Arthur asked.

“Well, there are a few reasons,” Katyusha said. “Firstly, even the Alices admitted they trust me.” Alfred honestly didn’t really trust her, but he wasn’t about to pipe in and ruin the moment. “Aside from that, if the prophecy I right and it actually came true, then the Alices should disappear once they get rid of all that is cruel, yes?”

“Well, they aren’t gone yet,” Arthur said simply.

“I guess not,” the Queen mused, leaning forward slightly. “Well, Alices. You seem to be doing the most out of everyone here. Do you have any ideas?”

“Well, uh, I guess you could try apologizing?” Alfred offered. “Like, for real. I know you said you don’t need to be forgiven, but something from the heart. Something that might…really make them believe you without needing to be proven, you know?”

“Well, of course I’m sorry, I thought that went without saying,” the Queen said without missing a beat. Now that seemed to really surprise everyone in the room, including Katyusha. “It’s become clear to me that the ends have not justified the means. We all know well enough what our titles are meant to be and I’m willing to try. Even with an ability and past as dark as mine, I would like to help change this world.

Well, that sounded sincere enough for Alfred, at least. Even though this wasn’t Alfred’s world, he could trust it in her hands. Well, her hands as well as the Hatter’s and the Cat’s. It was just up to the others, if they could trust her.

“You may not have my trust,” the Hatter said carefully, glancing at Francis for apparent reassurance, “but we can have a trial. And so help me if you lay a hand on anyone else with that damn ability of yours, I won’t hesitate to bring in a new Queen to this world.”

“That’s about as good that I can ask for,” Katyusha said simply. “And the Cats?”

Gilbert and Ludwig shared a look before Gilbert sighed, looking ahead.

“Ditto,” Gilbert muttered. “I’ll start trusting you once the Alices disappear. And hopefully the next prophecy won’t be so damn confusing.”

Alfred blinked when he felt a strange _tug_ on his heart. His hand slipped from Ivan’s and he looked up to see Ivan with a perplexed expression on his face, hand delicately tracing over his heart. Did this mean…they were going home? What was…

Alfred’s mind raced. If this meant he was leaving (which another harder tug told him it probably did) he hadn’t told Ivan nearly enough. Ivan didn’t know where exactly he lived. Where he went to school. Where he could find him. Would they even remember each other? What happened here? Alfred wanted to forget…everything. Forget the pain and all the shit he had to go through. Forget everything except for Ivan.

Another tug and Alfred felt all the air leave his lungs and he was starting to feel dizzy.

“Well, it looks like _something_ is happening to the Alices,” Gilbert mused, but his voice was warped, made Alfred nearly want to puke.

“Either you actually figured out a way to kill them,” Arthur mused.

“Or they did fulfill the prophecy,” Katyusha offered.

Alfred fell to his knees. And kept falling. He was surrounded by complete darkness, but an overwhelming fear in his stomach, his chest, his head as he fell. He screamed, desperately clawing around for Ivan, but he wasn’t close. He was gone. Alfred’s heart would have stopped if it weren’t already going into overdrive.

He screamed, but he couldn’t hear a sound over the blood roaring in his ears. He clawed at air in hopes of finding something to stop this fall. He started feeling panic taking over his system and he even tried teleporting, but it got him absolutely nowhere.

“Ivan!” he screamed.

* * *

Ivan sucked in a breath, opening his eyes wide as he looked at himself in the mirror. He breathed heavily, but he had no idea why. He was still wearing shoes from outside, groceries still needed to be put away. What was he doing looking at himself in the mirror? As he stared into his own eyes, he couldn’t help but think that he was forgetting something. Something important.

He shook his head, turning back towards the kitchen. For some reason, his mind was swirling with thoughts that he hadn’t wanted to think about for a long time. He’d been suppressing memories of Feliks, Toris, Eduard, and Ravis for…for years. And now they were in the front of his mind, made it hard to focus on putting the food away properly. And he was…overwhelmed.

By the need to apologize.

And he felt an incredibly strange urge to take a vacation. To America.

* * *

Alfred gasped as he gripped hard onto the countertop, looking into the mirror in front of him. He remembered something was wrong, something was…off. But he couldn’t place it. He looked at the towel he had in his hand, still wet from when he had washed his face earlier. Right…he had to do an essay. For some reason, he was really tempted to start doing research on some stuff about Russia…maybe even how much plane tickets cost…but he wasn’t sure why.

Whatever, he had to get this done so he could go to sleep and hopefully not be brain dead by the time he got to school. His foot snagged on the rug on the floor and he fell backwards. Immediately, he went into a blind panic and slapped his hand over his mouth as he let out a muffled shout. He sat on his ass for a few minutes while his breath finally deepened enough to breathe comfortably. His hands were visibly shaking as he stared at them.

What the hell was that?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand main story done. Sorry, sorry, I meant to do a lot more with Matthew and Gilbert but they never got around to being in the same place at once, so you get like a tiny bit of prucan at the end because I promised. Again, sorry. Also I know I meant to do more in-depth stuff on the Queen, but there wasn’t really a time for it, so that’s whatever… But the main thing is done and Alfred and Ivan are back in the ‘real world’ so this story will officially wrap up with the next chapter!
> 
> I’ll see you then!


	18. Chapter 18

“Okay, okay, but what do you think about the way the teach flipped out when Lovino started cussing her out,” Alfred said, barely able to contain his laughter. “I swear she was about to turn fucking purple!”

“But of course it was because of my charm and clever thinking that he wasn’t sent to the principal,” Francis said proudly, a hand over his heart.

“Yes, and might I add, if you use your ‘charm’ on anyone else, I might have to castrate you,” Arthur said pointedly.

Alfred howled with laughter as Francis turned pale. He sat across from his friends (who were now dating thanks to him) and next to his other friend, Kiku, as they ate their meals from Alfred’s favorite fast food joint. It was his turn to pick, since they rotated every day where to have lunch.

“Well, I…I didn’t know you’d get so jealous so quickly,” Francis said in an attempt to recover.

“Okay, guys, but seriously,” Alfred interjected, “she seriously thinks that we should write an essay? We’re like a month from finishing school what kind of sadistic person assigns an essay to a bunch of seniors a month before summer?”

“It’s not that long,” Kiku offered. “And knowing how you work, you could easily finish in one night.”

“Oh, that’s not even a question,” Alfred said. “But I just don’t want to go through the effort. She knows that no one’s gonna do it until the day before.”

“I have half a mind to just do it tonight to get it over with,” Arthur offered, slapping Francis’ hand away as he tried to steal food off of his tray.

“Don’t be one of those kids.” Alfred groaned, throwing his head back. “You’re about to go onto college, stop being such a nerd.”

“I’ll have you know that plenty of people in university act like this!” Arthur protested.

“Yeah, just the lame ones,” Alfred muttered, resting his head in his hand as he popped a fry into his mouth. He glanced out the window to look out at the people walking around. Since it was lunchtime, quite a lot of people were out and about, but Alfred was easily able to pick out one guy from the crowd.

He was incredibly tall and he had incredibly pale blond hair, which was probably why he stuck out so much. Not to mention that heavy looking scarf around his neck. The guy must have been uncomfortable. He was staring at a map with a frown on his face, like he was lost. Alfred smirked. Tourists… But there was just something about him…something that made it hard to look away…

“Alfred,” Kiku’s voice snapped Alfred back to the present. Francis and Arthur were already at the trashcan to dump their trays. “We should get back to school soon, lunch is almost over.”

“Yeah, yeah, sorry I spaced out,” Alfred said, not even looking back at the lost tourist as he followed his friends out of the restaurant.

* * *

Ivan frowned. He could find all the monuments just fine, he could find the museums just fine. Hell, he could find a place to eat and his own hotel just fine! So why did it feel like he was missing something? He’d spent months saving up for this seemingly pointless trip because he just couldn’t get it out of his mind. These last few months had been quite strange in general, despite his ‘thrilling American vacation’ plans.

He’d actually made an effort to find Feliks and the others. And he apologized. Not like they forgave him, he didn’t expect them to. But it felt…good to get it off his chest. He didn’t feel like he’d just left them alone anymore. He still felt largely responsible for what he had done and regretted it every day of his life, but…

Ivan shook his head. He was on vacation, for all that was worth in America. He looked up and down the street, finally away from his map. Why was he walking around in every place where there wasn’t something interesting to see? This was…ridiculous. He should be at least looking into history or something interesting. But, no, instead he found himself in front of a high school. Just as school was letting out.

A lot of excited teenagers walked around him and Ivan sighed, looking back down at the map. He had to find something interesting to make up for this waste of a day. He couldn’t just go back to his hotel without finding something interesting. Why did it feel like he was searching for something here? What was he missing?

When he looked up again someone caught his eye from across the street. It was just a kid, but he had on a hundred watt smile as he talked to his group of friends around him. He had pretty mussed up blond hair and an, admittedly, pretty face. For some reason, Ivan felt himself drawn towards him. But he shook his head. This was a school for crying out loud, there was no telling how old that kid was and he wasn’t about to deal with American police officers for being a large Russian man stalking a teenager.

He turned on his heel, not looking back at the kid, before he started on a trek to hopefully get somewhere interesting.

* * *

“You know, I can’t help but feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before,” Alfred mused, looking around the corner as he and his brother stopped at one of those shitty touristy stops. They were close to a lot of the tourist spots because his brother apparently needed to find himself an overpriced keychain for this new pen pal from Germany he had.

“Seen who?” Matthew asked as he looked over the display just outside the doors of the shop. He was looking for a specific name, something that started with a G, Alfred wasn’t paying attention.

“This…guy,” Alfred said, turning back to his brother instead of the tall tourist he actually managed to spot again. It was the strangest thing. Alfred normally never saw the same person twice in a big city like this, especially not a tourist. “It’s not important. Are we almost done? I’m almost afraid I’m gonna get pickpocketed already.”

“Relax,” Matthew said. “I’m pretty sure this store is gonna have his name.”

“If not, we can always go to the next one,” Alfred said. He glanced back at the tourist and noticed that he was actually walking that way, towards the store. Alfred instinctively inched closer to Matthew, making a show of looking through the names. “How many stores have we been to so far?”

“Five,” Matthew said simply. Alfred glanced up and noticed the tourist actually looked at him as well. They matched each other’s gaze before the taller of the two swiftly turned towards the T-shirts. Alfred frowned, furrowing his brow. He looked back at the display and a little name etched into the Washington Monument caught his eye.

“Hey, you said his name was Gilbert, right?” Alfred asked.

“Yeah…” Matthew said, following his gaze. “Oh, my God, you found it!”

“I’m surprised, who has a name like Gilbert anymore?” Alfred scoffed as Matthew snatched the little keychain from the display.

“Who has a name like Alfred?” Matthew offered. “I’m gonna buy this really quick.”

He ducked further into the store, leaving Alfred alone as he looked at the tourist again. Now he was looking at some sunglasses, picking one up delicately. Alfred was never gonna get this weird feeling out of his head unless he confronted this guy. And he had some time so…why not?

“Hey,” Alfred said, walking up to the guy, who visibly jumped at the sound of someone talking to him. Alfred couldn’t help but smile a little at that, tucking his hands into his pockets as the guy turned to look at him. “Couldn’t help but notice that you look a little lost.”

“I am just looking,” the man said, his deep voice betraying a Russian accent.

“Hey, man, if you want, I don’t exactly have a lot of shit to do tonight, so I wouldn’t mind…I dunno, showing you some of the cool stuff,” Alfred offered. “And I mean the stuff that those stupid tourist maps will never tell you.”

“Why?” the man asked skeptically.

“Think of it as my good deed for the day?” Alfred tried with a lop-sided smile. “How about this? We can…introduce ourselves first and then you can decide if you want to shut down my…amazing offer, okay?” For some reason, he felt like he just had to know this guy’s name. He couldn’t leave without that, at least. Then he could continue on with his life without all of this weird shit happening.

“You are very arrogant,” the man mused, but stuck out his hand with a small sigh. “But my name is Ivan, are you happy?”

Why did that name sound so familiar?

“Alfred.”

“Hey, Al, I’m back, sorry that took so long, problem with the card.” Alfred took Ivan’s hand and couldn’t help but feel a…jolt of something pass through him. “Hey, who’s this?” Alfred barely registered his brother’s words as he slowly looked into Ivan’s eyes.

In a flash, everything made sense. The weird feeling around him, the small sense of familiarity, the reason he felt attracted to a complete and total stranger. Memories came flooding back after months of them leaving no trace. All the good and the bad and the people he’d met in Wonderland. All of the pain and the panic and... the feelings he'd experienced all because of the man in front of him. The joy, the comfort, the... love.

“Ivan!” Alfred shouted, all but launching himself at Ivan, his arms wrapped around his neck and his legs tight around his torso. Ivan hugged him back just as fiercely with a slight laugh.

“Alfred.” His voice was a whisper, but Alfred could easily pick it up. This was…real. The real world, the real Ivan. No prophecy to worry about just…real life.

“Holy shit,” Alfred said with a smile, tears pricking in his eyes. How the hell had he forgotten? About everything? About Ivan?

Alfred pulled back enough to look Ivan in the face again and placed a firm, fervent kiss on his lips. Ivan returned in kind and Alfred honestly couldn’t care less about the place or time. He needed to feel Ivan now, everywhere. Before Alfred could get very far, though, another voice finally caught his attention.

“Um, Al?!” Matthew snapped and Alfred pulled back, looking back at his brother sheepishly. Matthew looked completely confused and perplexed, staring at Alfred with wide eyes.

“Oh, uh, yeah, this probably looks weird, doesn’t it?” Alfred asked with a laugh, slowly climbing down from Ivan, who laughed as well. “Um…Matt this is Ivan, Ivan this is Matt, my brother.”

“Pleasure to finally meet you,” Ivan said happily.

“Um…and how did you two meet?” Matthew asked nervously.

“He’s a pen pal,” Alfred blurted out the first excuse he could think of. He nearly hit himself in the face with how stupid an excuse like that was.

“You don’t have a pen pal,” Matthew scoffed. “You keep making fun of me for having one.”

“I can keep my own secrets,” Alfred said, arms crossed over his chest. “Besides, at least I get to meet my pen pal.” That was when the words fully processed to Alfred. Matthew’s pen pal…was Gilbert. Oh, God, did that mean Alfred was gonna have to see him again? He really hoped not…

“Jackass,” Matthew muttered, punching Alfred’s shoulder.

“I see what you mean about him,” Ivan mused and Alfred couldn’t help but smile. Ivan remembered when Alfred told him that the Door Mouse acted nothing like his actual brother. “If I am interrupting something, I can see you tomorrow…”

“No!” Alfred shouted. “C’mon, big guy, at least let me see you for a little while. Make sure you’re actually real.”

“Well, you don’t have homework tonight,” Matthew mused. “I could cover for you with Mom and Dad…but it might cost you…”

“Whatever, you can play on my Xbox all night if you want to,” Alfred said easily. Small price to pay to be able to spend a few hours with Ivan that didn’t involve them worrying about their lives or helping stabilize someone’s mental state.

“And once you get home, you’re telling me how you managed to get a pen pal like…” Matthew looked Ivan up and down skeptically, “him.” Alfred couldn’t help but laugh a little. Ivan was huge, and obviously not a student anymore. Alfred would have to work on that lie on his way back home.

“See ya in a few hours, then!” Alfred said with a little salute, happily pushing Ivan out of the store and down the street. It didn’t even take a whole minute before they hugged each other tightly again. “Holy shit, I can’t say how happy I am to see you…I…I forgot about everything…”

“I did, too,” Ivan said.

“But you didn’t forget to come look for me,” Alfred said, looking up at Ivan with wide eyes. “Thanks, Vanya.”

“No, thank you, Fedya,” Ivan said, tucking some of Alfred’s hair behind his ear. He spoke something in Russian and Alfred couldn’t help but shudder at the sound of it. It was…so smooth and beautiful. He really, really liked it.

“Hey, do you know what I just noticed?” Alfred asked, tracing his hand over Ivan’s face, taking in every little detail he could find and see. “This is my first time seeing you with my glasses on.”

“You do look rather adorable in them,” Ivan said happily. “Now, if you wouldn’t mind, I believe I was promised a tour by one of this city’s very own residents.”

“Okay, do you know what we’re gonna do first?” Alfred asked excitedly, already pulling Ivan down the street. “We’re hitting the Smithsonian! Just wait till you see all the shit they have about space! It’ll blow your fucking mind!”

“I look forward to it,” Ivan said, taking Alfred’s hand in his own and giving it a little squeeze.

Alfred felt completely overfilled with happiness. It was practically spilling out of him. There was a lot to ask Ivan, a lot still left to get to know, but…hey, they were pen pals now, after all. They had plenty of time to catch up. Maybe Alfred really would start looking into some schools in Russia to study in…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter is short, but it’s an epilogue so that’s all good. They’ve met again in the real world and remembered everything, how sweet! Thank you all so much for sticking through this with me! It was an adventure on everyone’s part, I’m sure! This will probably be my last Hetalia fanfic for a while, but who knows when I’ll write these characters again, since I love them so much! But, regardless, thank you for reading and enjoying!
> 
> See you around!


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